The Introjection Is the mechanism by which the subject internalizes characteristics corresponding to another person.
Introjection is intimately linked with the concept of identification proposed by psychoanalysis, understood as the process by which the subject acquires beliefs, ideologies and Personality traits Of another individual.
That is, characteristics that are inherent to the other to which it relates, become appropriate through the introjection of the same.
In this way, introjection involves the acquisition of attitudes, behaviors, emotions And perceptions of people who are important or influential to the subject.
This mechanism by which the individual appropriates the characteristics of the other, operates unconsciously.
In turn, introjection was described, from psychoanalysis by Sigmund Freud, as a Defense mechanism . It works unconsciously and it is by means of which people identify with others, being able to have this, negative or positive effects.
From this perspective, introjection is considered the process by which the subject constructs his / her Self and the Superego internalizing the corresponding behavioral traits to another.
What are the origins of introjection?
The concept of introjection was originally used by Sándor Ferenczi (1873-1933), doctor and psychoanalyst of Hungarian origin.
Designation was based on the way in which the I (psychic instance related to consciousness) what it receives from the outside world converts it into objects of unconscious fantasies of nature.
Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) medical neurologist took this concept for the development of his psychoanalytic theory. He conceived introjection as the mechanism through which the ego, inclined to be governed by the principle of pleasure, wishes to introject itself (in terms of incorporating) all that is good and to take from it all that is evil.
This concept is also incorporated and described by Melanie Klein (1882-1960) Austrian psychoanalyst, who refers to introjection as the incorporation of good objects belonging to the surrounding world of the subject.
Introjection can be understood as a defense. This defense mechanism comes to protect the subject before the distress of separation.
This is generated, for example, when one of the parents leaves. In the child appears anguish By that absence and it is through the incorporation of the characteristics of that person, as the psychism avoids the anguish before that separation.
This refers to a normal development model. It allows the detachment of the subject with the objects of the external world, thus achieving its autonomy.
Introjection is part of the genesis of the Superego (psychic instance related to the unconscious part of the Self, being its greatest critic and judge).
It is through the incorporation of the paternal characteristics, as the Superyó is generated after the culmination of the Oedipus complex .
With the characteristics of the paternal figure, such as his desires, threats and prohibitions, are with which the child identifies. In this way introjection is intimately linked to the concept of identification.
Characteristics of the Injection
Introjection may contract positive or negative characteristics. This will depend on the type of behaviors, attitudes, values, beliefs and personality traits that the subject adopts of the other, and how they make them own.
One person can introject positive aspects of another. For example, children who admire their heroes can incorporate some of their characteristics such as kindness, solidarity, help for the less strong or the weak, among others.
However, introjection can be negative and even destructive when the subject identifies with the other in an extreme way. If this other is an aggressive person, through identification the subject will introject the aggressive features of the same.
Another example in which the introjection can take negative characteristics is if the child has had a childhood or harmful breeding. In this case, the child may introject negative aspects of it and the consequences of it are unhealthy feelings such as guilt Or incompetence among others.
Another negative consequence produced by introjection is the internal conflict that can arise when the subject incorporates concepts, ideas, or beliefs that are incongruent with each other.
Also, introjection makes the subject unconsciously paying more attention to attitudes, values , Beliefs and personality traits of the people around you, rather than focusing on your own wants and needs.
The term introjection is closely related to that of identification and incorporation.
Now, from the psychoanalytic perspective, it is the body, that is, the bodily limit that constitutes the separation between an interior and an exterior. Between an inner world and an external world. The term of incorporation is related to it.
The notion of introjection is broader. It is not only the interior of the body, but also the interior of the psychic apparatus.
Introjection should not be confused with introjective identification. The latter refers to the moment in which the subject introduces into his self a characteristic of another person whom he finds attractive.
In this way, the subject feels closer to that person both physically and emotionally. He fears that the distance from it may cancel the introjection, especially if it is not yet fully internalized (incorporated).
These negative aspects of introjection can turn it into a limiting introjection in terms of dysfunctionality because it prevents the subject from differentiating his own thoughts or judgments from those of others.
That is, they are so internalized that the subject has incorporated them as their own, forgetting that they belonged to someone else. In this way, the subject is like the other, says what the other said, losing subjectivity and differentiation for that other.
Part of the internalized characteristics are mere repetitions received in the course of his life.
However, all the introjections performed unconsciously throughout his life have served the subject to survive, regardless of whether these introjections were functional or not, positive or negative.
References
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