What is the meaning of reaction formation?

noun

  • Psychiatry) a defense mechanism in which a person unconsciously develops attitudes and behavior that are the opposite of unacceptable repressed desires and impulses and serve to conceal them. (
    • usage: "his strict morality is just a reaction formation to hide his sexual drive"
WordNet 3.0 © 2006 by Princeton University
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APAWordNet. (2010). reaction formation. Retrieved September 23, 2026, from http://smartdefine.org/reaction_formation/definitions/1243590
ChicagoWordNet. 2010. "reaction formation" http://smartdefine.org/reaction_formation/definitions/1243590 (accessed September 23, 2026).
HarvardWordNet 2010, reaction formation, Smart Define, viewed 23 September, 2026, <http://smartdefine.org/reaction_formation/definitions/1243590>.
MLAWordNet. "reaction formation" 23 October 2010. Web. 23 September 2026. <http://smartdefine.org/reaction_formation/definitions/1243590>