Identification with the aggressor is a defense mechanism described within psychoanalysis, in which a person facing psychological trauma copes with the impossible choice of being either a victim or an abuser by taking on the role, functional traits, and aggressive or behavioral style of the aggressor rather than remaining only a victim. It has also been described as a way of coping with mental distress more broadly, and in some accounts as a particular instance of a zero-sum interaction between two parties.
Facts
Core ClaimIdentification with the aggressor is a defense mechanism that designates the assumption of the role of the aggressor when a psychological trauma poses the dilemma of being a victim or an abuser. 1 First Described Year Classification
Type of Phenomenon Sources
1. Identification with the Aggressor - Wikipedia
Intro
designates the assumption of the role of the aggressor and their functional attributes or the imitation of their aggressive and behavioral mode, when a psychological trauma poses the hopeless dilemma of being a victim or an abuser
History section
He further elaborated this work until he published it in 1949 in The International Journal of Psychoanalysis with the new title "Confusion of the Tongues Between the Adults and the Child-(The Language of Tenderness and of Passion)". In 1936, Anna Freud took up and developed the concept in her book The Ego and the Mechanisms of Defence (German: Das Ich und die Abwehrmechanismen).
lead section, phenomenon-kind classification
Specifically, it is a defence mechanism that designates the assumption of the role of the aggressor and their functional attributes or the imitation of their aggressive and behavioral mode, when a psychological trauma poses the hopeless dilemma of being a victim or an abuser.
In Group: Defense Mechanisms, Lead
Specifically, it is a defence mechanism that designates the assumption of the role of the aggressor and their functional attributes or the imitation of their aggressive and behavioral mode, when a psychological trauma poses the hopeless dilemma of being a victim or an abuser.
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