Introduction
Projection refers to a type of defense mechanism in psychoanalytic theory, whereby unacceptable feelings and self-attributes within an individual are disavowed and attributed to someone else. So, for example, an individual may hold aggressive or murderous thoughts and feelings which are unacceptable to their sense of self. In order to defend against a threat to their self, they disavow these feelings and project them onto others, who are then perceived to be hostile and aggressive. Projection is involved in the process of othering, where the other comes to represent the opposite of the self, often that which is disavowed in the self.
Definition
A commonly understood definition of the term “projection” is its referral to something being transferred or displaced from one location to another. So, for example, in film, an image is projected from the negative onto a screen. This concept is similar to the definition of “projection” as used in psychoanalytic theory. Something...
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Online Resources
Melanie Klein Trust. http://www.melanie-klein-trust.org.uk/theory
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Rohleder, P. (2014). Projection, Overview. In: Teo, T. (eds) Encyclopedia of Critical Psychology. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-5583-7_415
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