Psychologically, Self Defense Mechanisms Contribute To Unintentional Mistakes

Silhouette illustration (Unsplash / Sean Kong)

JAKARTA - According to the Big Indonesian Dictionary (KBBI), erroneous means wrong or unintentional wrong. In practice, mistakes are related to harmful mistakes, both detrimental to others and themselves.

Whereas in a religious context, mistakes are related to the consequences or punishment after making a mistake. Now, in a psychological context, there are three things related to making mistakes.

Cited from Psychology Today, Monday, February 22, according to the holy book, Adam and Eve could not stop themselves from committing sins, namely eating the forbidden fruit. If it is examined psychologically, it has to do with impulse control.

If you make a mistake without realizing it, it means the effect is out of control. According to Zimbardo, this situation is influenced by the locus of control and the style of attribution. Both drivers have a significant impact on motivation, expectations, self-esteem, risky behavior, and the actual results of the actions taken.

Another view of accidental error can be based on the thinking of Sigmund Freud. It can be assumed that unwanted action is unconscious behavior. Without taking into account the effects can even be detrimental.

Freud is considered the father of psychoanalysis and today, psychoanalytic and psychodynamics are used as approaches to therapy. Freud also composed theories about subjects, such as the subconscious mind and dreams.

When someone performs an action and focuses on desire, it is called an id. Whereas the superego is morally driven and the ego is in between. Erroneous cases, for example, are the unconscious attraction to other people.

The subconscious mind was described by Freud as a well of thoughts and feelings that are strong and are not directly aware but have an important impact in everyday life. In the case of mental illness, the subconscious makes a big contribution.

Thought, according to Freud, is also a defense mechanism. Defense mechanisms are the mind's way of adapting to internal conflicts. In cases handled by a therapist, it generally occurs when a person has difficulty telling of a traumatic event.

For example, the defense mechanism in the mind is experienced when experiencing repression, uncomfortable conscious situations, displacement, shifting emotional responses, and behaving in ways that are contrary to their true feelings.

In the real context, for example, infidelity. An affair is 'acknowledged' as an unconscious mistake. However, who doesn't recognize that cheating is unethical? Of course, everyone recognizes, so in this case, the defense mechanism can also work.

The mind starts negotiating, then proposes a fix. Even though improvements are made, but as responsibility for unconscious actions, the disappointed party will also survive with the mechanism of thought. Well, here everyone's ego is at work.

Can you accept other people's mistakes? Yes or no, for sure your ego is negotiating its own defense mechanisms.