defense reaction
- noun
- /dɪˈfɛns ˌriˈækʃən/
- Specialized
:
reacción de defensa
- During therapy, she learned how her body's defense reaction often shielded her from confronting painful memories.
Examples
-
Anxiety can provoke a defense reaction, leading individuals to reject thoughts that cause them discomfort.
-
Several of the interviewees who (against all expectations) admire Bergman's searing emotional exhibitionism explain the Bergman backlash as a particularly Swedish defense reaction.
Academic text (1997) -
When he faced criticism, his unconscious defense reaction caused him to become defensive and withdrawn.
Synonyms
38
7.4
A thought or action people do without thinking to avoid strong feelings
10
5.3
A mental way a person uses without thinking to reduce strong anxious feelings
Antonyms
- Specialized
2
4.6
A treatment where a person faces what makes them afraid in a safe place
Surface Forms
Morphology
The noun phrase literally combines 'defense' (something that protects or reduces threat/anxiety) with 'reaction' (a response), so a learner who knows both constituents can infer it refers to a response that functions to defend against anxiety. The specialized clinical nuance (unconscious psychological process) is technical, but the core compositional meaning is directly predictable from the parts.
Etymology
Defense reaction comes from the image of someone quickly raising a shield to block a blow: defense is protection and reaction is a fast response. In psychology, this picture shows the mind making a quick, often hidden or automatic move to protect you from painful feelings or strong worry, so it is a way 'to defend against' those feelings.