Blackman explains how to detect and interpret a defense and offers supportive therapy techniques. Practical tips interspersed throughout this text make it an excellent reference tool for students and clinicians, while the user-friendly features allow all readers to experience how psychological defenses operate in everyday life Defenses are mental operations that restore or maintain psychic equilibrium when people feel that they cannot manage emotions that stem from conflict. Blackman catalogues 101 defenses for therapists in the assessment and treatment of psychopathology and for anyone interested in understanding how psychological defenses operate in everyday life. Summary Sheets Quick Definitions of 101 Defenses in Approximate Order of Their First Appearance During Development 13(92) Defense Constellations Characteristic of Neurosis 105(1) Defense Constellations Characteristic of Borderline and Psychosis 106(65) Psychoanalytic Diagnostic Developmental Considerations 171 Preface vii Acknowledgments xi Introduction xiii General Concepts about Defenses 1(16) Defenses That Arise in the Oral, Anal, and First Genital Phases of Psychosexual Development 17(26) Latency, Adolescent, and Assorted Other Defenses 43(46) Defenses Used in the Diagnosis of Psychopathology 89(24) Interpretive Techniques 113(24) Differential Diagnosis and Treatment Selection 137(6) Supportive Therapy Techniques 143(6) Defenses in the Assessment of Suicidal Propensities 149(16) Appendix 1 Schizophrenia: History of the Development of Diagnostic Criteria 165(4) Appendix 2 Ego Strengths Assessed in Diagnosis 169(2) Appendix 3 Psychoanalytic Diagnostic Developmental Considerations 171(4) Appendix 4 A Bit of History of Object Relations Theory 175(4) Appendix 5 Bizet's Carmen on the Couch 179(4) Post Script Some Disclaimers 183(2) Notes 185(4) Bibliography 189(16) Index 205