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Introjection is a process where individuals create and separate aspects of their personality, creating a superego to keep the id in check. Children internalize ideas from authority figures, creating moral rules and boundaries. Introjection can be positive or negative, and can be a defense mechanism. Negative introjection can lead to self-criticism and guilt, while positive introjection can help deal with separations. Therapy can help get rid of negative internalizations and replace them with positive beliefs.
Introjection is a term first used by Sigmund Freud to describe how the individual creates and separates aspects of his personality. In particular, when a person introjects or goes through the process of introjection, he generally creates the superego, the dominant moral force or consciousness that helps keep the id (the pleasure-seeking aspect of the self) at bay. The ego is the conscious person who is sometimes torn apart by the id or the superego and must choose according to the wishes of both. In other words, the ego is the mediator between two aspects of the self that often posit diametrically opposed positions on what to think, what to do, and how to be.
This can best be understood in layman’s terms when one thinks of the cartoons or movie Animal House, where one character has an angel and a devil sitting on each shoulder. The devil is the id, the superego angel, and the ego, the character caught between opposing points of view. What Freud was getting at, though, is that children and even adults use the process of introjection to create this division, and more importantly to create the “angel on your shoulder” who helps mitigate his evil opponent.
According to Freud, children introject themselves through the internalization of ideas or concepts from authority figures, often parents. Thus the moral rules and boundaries established by the child are internalized by what the child learns from parents or caregivers. In the early years of school, for example, introjection is not complete and parents may be told that a child has not yet learned to ‘govern himself’. This is not unusual at all. It just means that they haven’t fully absorbed the moral code and ways of behavior expressed by those around them. There are also mixed messages in a school setting, as peer influence can cause the internalization of value systems that are very different from what parents or the school would like.
Many psychologists also see introjection as a defense mechanism, especially when children have to learn to deal with parents or guardians who are not always available. By unconsciously absorbing the parents in the thought process, it is as if the parents are present when they are not. Parental authority remains and their presence is felt unconsciously through introjection. Children can also show some of this when they learn about object permanence, that something is there even when it’s hidden. In a way, object permanence can help young children make the leap to introjection, so there is always a sense that the parents continue to exist, even if unseen.
Introjection can be positive or negative, depending on what aspects a child or even an adult absorbs from others. A child who has a negative parent may be an adult who constantly feels guilty, even when he is doing nothing wrong. It is very difficult to get to the source of this guilt, since it is unconsciously based, and a lot of work has to be done in therapy to get to unconscious core beliefs that cause the person to think they are doing everything wrong, or are not behaving as they should. they should . Self-criticism can take over, creating a superego-driven person.
Positive introjection helps a person deal with separations, even the loss of parents. Many people feel that their lost loved ones are still “there” in some sense. To some extent this can be explained by introjecting or absorbing aspects of that person into oneself. Adults may have the experience of saying something that sounds “just like their mother” or like their father. This is because, according to Freud, the child has to some extent absorbed the personality of the mother or father, and it is like having a mum or dad guiding your thoughts. Again, this may not be a bad thing, but it really depends on what has been internalized unconsciously. Even good parents can occasionally make terrible mistakes, and sometimes it’s these mistakes that hold more weight in a child’s unconscious self, rather than the many times a parent has done a good job.
The advantage of considering negative introjection is that with therapy it is possible to get rid of the negative internalizations that have created great unhappiness for you. Although Freud’s method was one in which patients revealed childhood experiences and explained them in a way that understands their roots, a more common analytic method used today is cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). This aims in a similar direction: revealing the core beliefs that create depression and anxiety, analyzing how they drive behavior, and gradually replacing these beliefs with more positive ways of thinking about yourself. In a sense, the goal of CBT creates a method of positive introjection, a new internalization of a more positive set of beliefs.
