PMH-BC Psychological Defense Mechanisms
Questions & Answers 2026/2027 | High-Yield
Psychiatric Nursing Review | Graded A+
1. A client who has just been diagnosed with cancer tells the nurse, "The lab
must have mixed up my results." Which defense mechanism is the client
using?
A) Projection
B) Suppression
C) Denial
D) Repression
Answer C: Denial
Rationale: Denial is refusal to accept reality to avoid anxiety. The client is rejecting
the diagnosis.
2. A nurse notices that a client who was fired from a job is now yelling at the
nursing assistant for no reason. Which defense mechanism is being used?
A) Projection
B) Displacement
C) Reaction formation
D) Sublimation
Answer B: Displacement
,Rationale: Displacement transfers emotions from the original source (anger at job
loss) to a safer target (nursing assistant).
3. A client with obsessive-compulsive disorder repeatedly washes hands after
having intrusive thoughts about contamination. This is an example of:
A) Intellectualization
B) Undoing
C) Repression
D) Rationalization
Answer B: Undoing
Rationale: Undoing is an attempt to neutralize or "undo" an unacceptable
thought or behavior by performing a ritual.
4. A medical student channels her anxiety about exams into excessive
studying and achieving high grades. This is an example of:
A) Displacement
B) Sublimation
C) Reaction formation
D) Projection
Answer B: Sublimation
Rationale: Sublimation transforms unacceptable impulses into socially acceptable
and productive behaviors.
,5. A client states, "I'm not angry at my wife; she's the one who is always
angry at me." Which defense mechanism is being used?
A) Projection
B) Displacement
C) Denial
D) Rationalization
Answer A: Projection
Rationale: Projection attributes one's own unacceptable feelings or impulses onto
another person.
6. A client with a fear of flying tells the nurse, "I don't want to fly because it's
statistically more dangerous than driving." This is an example of:
A) Rationalization
B) Intellectualization
C) Reaction formation
D) Suppression
Answer B: Intellectualization
Rationale: Intellectualization avoids emotion by focusing on abstract logic or facts
instead of feelings.
7. A client who is angry with a family member instead says, "I'm just fine. I
love my family." Which defense mechanism is this?
, A) Denial
B) Reaction formation
C) Projection
D) Sublimation
Answer B: Reaction formation
Rationale: Reaction formation replaces an unacceptable feeling with the opposite
behavior or emotion.
8. A client says, "I know I have a drinking problem, but I only drink on
weekends. It's not that bad." Which defense mechanism is being used?
A) Denial
B) Rationalization
C) Projection
D) Undoing
Answer B: Rationalization
Rationale: Rationalization creates logical-sounding excuses to justify
unacceptable behavior.
9. A client who has been sexually abused as a child reports having no
memory of the event. Which defense mechanism is at work?
A) Denial
B) Repression
C) Suppression
Questions & Answers 2026/2027 | High-Yield
Psychiatric Nursing Review | Graded A+
1. A client who has just been diagnosed with cancer tells the nurse, "The lab
must have mixed up my results." Which defense mechanism is the client
using?
A) Projection
B) Suppression
C) Denial
D) Repression
Answer C: Denial
Rationale: Denial is refusal to accept reality to avoid anxiety. The client is rejecting
the diagnosis.
2. A nurse notices that a client who was fired from a job is now yelling at the
nursing assistant for no reason. Which defense mechanism is being used?
A) Projection
B) Displacement
C) Reaction formation
D) Sublimation
Answer B: Displacement
,Rationale: Displacement transfers emotions from the original source (anger at job
loss) to a safer target (nursing assistant).
3. A client with obsessive-compulsive disorder repeatedly washes hands after
having intrusive thoughts about contamination. This is an example of:
A) Intellectualization
B) Undoing
C) Repression
D) Rationalization
Answer B: Undoing
Rationale: Undoing is an attempt to neutralize or "undo" an unacceptable
thought or behavior by performing a ritual.
4. A medical student channels her anxiety about exams into excessive
studying and achieving high grades. This is an example of:
A) Displacement
B) Sublimation
C) Reaction formation
D) Projection
Answer B: Sublimation
Rationale: Sublimation transforms unacceptable impulses into socially acceptable
and productive behaviors.
,5. A client states, "I'm not angry at my wife; she's the one who is always
angry at me." Which defense mechanism is being used?
A) Projection
B) Displacement
C) Denial
D) Rationalization
Answer A: Projection
Rationale: Projection attributes one's own unacceptable feelings or impulses onto
another person.
6. A client with a fear of flying tells the nurse, "I don't want to fly because it's
statistically more dangerous than driving." This is an example of:
A) Rationalization
B) Intellectualization
C) Reaction formation
D) Suppression
Answer B: Intellectualization
Rationale: Intellectualization avoids emotion by focusing on abstract logic or facts
instead of feelings.
7. A client who is angry with a family member instead says, "I'm just fine. I
love my family." Which defense mechanism is this?
, A) Denial
B) Reaction formation
C) Projection
D) Sublimation
Answer B: Reaction formation
Rationale: Reaction formation replaces an unacceptable feeling with the opposite
behavior or emotion.
8. A client says, "I know I have a drinking problem, but I only drink on
weekends. It's not that bad." Which defense mechanism is being used?
A) Denial
B) Rationalization
C) Projection
D) Undoing
Answer B: Rationalization
Rationale: Rationalization creates logical-sounding excuses to justify
unacceptable behavior.
9. A client who has been sexually abused as a child reports having no
memory of the event. Which defense mechanism is at work?
A) Denial
B) Repression
C) Suppression
