The type of defense mechanism in which emotional feeling is transferred to objects who are less dangerous than those who initially arouse the emotional is?

Appeared in: UPRVUNL - 2021

Explanation

Displacement is an unconscious defense mechanism where the mind redirects emotions from a dangerous or unacceptable object to one that is safe or acceptable.
The core of this mechanism is shifting feelings (like anger, frustration, or fear) from the original source to a substitute target.
An example is an employee who is angered by their boss but cannot express it for fear of job loss, so they go home and yell at their spouse. The boss is the dangerous object, and the spouse is the less dangerous one.

Why Other Options Were Wrong

Option A: Substitution involves replacing an unattainable goal with a more achievable one. It is about changing goals or aspirations, not redirecting emotions onto a different target.
Option B: Conversion is the process where emotional distress is unconsciously expressed as a physical symptom (e.g., blindness, paralysis) that has no underlying medical cause.
Option D: Transference is the unconscious redirection of feelings and attitudes from a person in one's past (like a parent) to a person in the present (like a therapist or nurse). While it involves transferring feelings, the key is the re-enactment of a past relationship dynamic, not simply finding a safer target for an immediate emotion.

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Clinical Relevance

Nursing practice connection: Knowing Defense Mechanisms in Psychiatry helps nurses interpret findings accurately and avoid errors in routine assessment, medication administration, and patient teaching.
Nurses frequently become targets of displaced anger from patients or families who are frustrated with a diagnosis, pain, or the healthcare system.
Recognizing this behavior as a defense mechanism allows the nurse to respond with empathy and de-escalation techniques rather than taking the hostility personally.
What if? If a patient starts treating a young nurse exactly as they treated their own child, providing unsolicited advice and showing protective behaviors, this would be an example of transference, not displacement, as it's about recreating a past relationship dynamic.

How to Approach the Question

First, analyze the key phrases in the question stem: 'emotional feeling is transferred' and the crucial qualifier 'to objects who are less dangerous'.
Evaluate each option's definition. 'Substitution' is about goals. 'Conversion' is about physical symptoms. 'Transference' is about past relationships.
Recognize that 'Displacement' specifically involves redirecting an emotion to a safer, substitute target.
The phrase 'less dangerous' directly matches the core concept of displacement, making it the correct answer.

Concept Tested & Keywords

Concept Tested: Defense Mechanisms in Psychiatry
Stem keywords: defense mechanism, emotional feeling, transferred, less dangerous
Lead-in keywords: The type of
Negative lead-in flag: false

Question ID

QXTHc-YPtkpgo50OeP5U0s

Reference Book

E6 Robert Boland, Marcia L. Verduin - Kaplan and Sadock's Comprehensive Text of Psychiatry-Wolters Kluwer Health (2024) (pp 1-16525 of 16525) p. 2994-2996

E6 Kaplan Sadock's Synopsis of Psychiatry-2022 (pp 1-3768 of 3768) p. 3348-3350

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