Reaction formation is preventing dangerous impulses from being expressed in behaviour by exaggerating the opposite behavior.
Reaction formation is a psychological defense mechanism whereby a person unconsciously replaces an unpleasant or anxiety-inducing impulse with its opposite, frequently expressed in an exaggerated or showy manner.
Sigmund Freud first suggested the idea of defense mechanisms as part of his psychoanalytic theory in the late 1800s. The topic of defensive mechanisms was first brought up by Freud, but his daughter Anna Freud expanded on it by suggesting 10 crucial defense mechanisms in her influential 1936 book, The Ego and the Mechanisms of Defense. Reaction creation was one of those ten defense mechanisms.
The ego uses reaction formation as a kind of self-defense against any ideas or emotions that it deems to be in violation of its own standards or those of his or her family, friends, community, or society. While doing so may temporarily safeguard the person's self-esteem, over time it may become troublesome. One's genuine self is suppressed, which is detrimental to one's wellbeing.
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