Although Tara has bought several of her research papers on-line and preprogrammed formulas into her calculator rather than memorizing them as required by her instructor, Tara still sees herself as a "good" student because she attends class regularly and makes A's and B's. By keeping her unethical side separated from her "good" student side, Tara does not experience any anxiety from this contradiction in behavior. Tara's behavior illustrates which defense mechanism?
A)isolation
B)fantasy
C)intellectualization
D)identification

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Isolation is a defense mechanism where an individual separates conflicting thoughts and feelings into different compartments, allowing them to avoid the anxiety that arises from acknowledging the contradictions between them. Tara's ability to separate her unethical academic behavior from her self-image as a "good" student without feeling anxiety is an example of isolation.

Although Tara Has Bought Several of Her Research Papers On-Line