Todd was physically abused up until the age of eight. He is now 40 years old and he has absolutely no memories of the early abuse that he experienced. What defence mechanism is Todd using, according to Freud?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Todd is using the defence mechanism of repression, which is the act of unconsciously shoving unpleasant or traumatic memories out of one's conscious mind to avoid feeling emotions associated with the memories. In Todd's case, he has no conscious memory of the abuse he experienced as a child, which is likely due to his use of repression as a coping mechanism.

Todd Was Physically Abused Up Until the Age of Eight