Which defense mechanism entails converting unacceptable impulses into their opposite?

Which defense mechanism entails converting unacceptable impulses into their opposite?

• A. Reaction Formation
• B. Repression
• C. Projection
• D. Sublimation

Answer: (A)

Reaction formation is when an unacceptable impulse is expressed as its opposite. This defense mechanism flips what a person truly feels or wants into a behavior or attitude that is the direct reverse, often to appear socially acceptable or to hide the uncomfortable impulse. For example, someone who harbors hostile feelings toward another may act unusually sweet and accommodating around that person, or someone with forbidden desires might overcompensate with moralistic judgments. This is different from repression, which pushes the impulse out of conscious awareness; from projection, which attributes those feelings to someone else; and from sublimation, which channels the impulse into a constructive activity rather than its opposite. In the question, the description matches reaction formation precisely.

Reaction formation is when an unacceptable impulse is expressed as its opposite. This defense mechanism flips what a person truly feels or wants into a behavior or attitude that is the direct reverse, often to appear socially acceptable or to hide the uncomfortable impulse. For example, someone who harbors hostile feelings toward another may act unusually sweet and accommodating around that person, or someone with forbidden desires might overcompensate with moralistic judgments. This is different from repression, which pushes the impulse out of conscious awareness; from projection, which attributes those feelings to someone else; and from sublimation, which channels the impulse into a constructive activity rather than its opposite. In the question, the description matches reaction formation precisely.