Denying that something exists Defense Brief Description Mechanism Displacement Taking feelings out on others Denial Repression Suppression Unconsciously keeping unpleasant information from your conscious mind Consciously keeping unpleasant information from your conscious mind Example Being angry at your boss but taking it out on your spouse instead Being the victim of a violent crime, yet denying that the incident occurred Being abused as a child but not remembering the abuse Being abused as a child but choosing to push it out of your mind Sublimation Converting unacceptable impulses into more acceptable outlets Projection Being upset with your spouse but going for a walk instead of fighting Assigning your own unacceptable feelings or qualities Feeling attracted to someone other than your spouse, then fearing that your to others spouse is cheating on you Intellectualization Thinking about stressful things in a clinical way Rationalization Regression Reaction Formation Justifying an unacceptable feeling or behavior with logic Reverting to earlier behaviors Replacing an unwanted impulse with its opposite Losing a close family member and staying busy with making the necessary arrangements instead of feeling sad Being denied a loan for your dream house, then saying it's a good thing because the house was too big anyway Hugging a teddy bear when you're stressed, like you did when you were a child Being sad about a recent breakup, but acting happy about it