Projective Identification

Projective identification is a defense mechanism in which a person unconsciously attributes their own unacceptable qualities to another person, who then comes to internalize and act out those projected qualities. Melanie Klein introduced the concept, and it has since become widely used within psychoanalytic psychotherapy. The mechanism works through unconscious fantasy: a person defensively expels unwanted feelings or parts of themselves into someone else, and that other person can be induced to actually embody what was projected onto them, sometimes producing a self-fulfilling prophecy. This distinguishes it from simple projection, since the recipient of a projective identification is not merely perceived a certain way but can be drawn into becoming that way; in extreme cases a person can lose their own sense of self and function largely as a vessel for what has been projected onto them. Therapists use the concept clinically to understand transference and countertransference within the therapeutic relationship.