What’s the Concept of Identification with Aggressor’s?
We had talked about identification as a Defense Mechanism we use to protect ourselves from anxiety and discomfort.
A special kind of this however is the identification with Aggressor’s which was core in Anna Freud’s seminar work of the Ego and Mechanisms of defense.
First introduced by Sandor Ferenczi, a Hungary psychologist, in his essay the confusion of the tongue where he illustrated that children who experienced traumatic events tried to mimic their abuser’s desires and behaviours as a defense mechanism to feel safe. The confusion of the language in this case can be linked to the idea of a child speaking the emotional language of their abusers.
Anna Freud later expounded on it, demonstrating how through identification with the aggressor, the Victim transforms himself from the person threatened into the person who makes the threat by impersonating the aggressor , assuming his attributes or imitating his aggression.
Why do we Identify with the Aggressor?
We identify with the aggressor to avoid the discomfort that comes with anxiety (eg; Fear of criticism)
We also do it to earn approval ie; If I become like them maybe they won’t harm me.
We also do it to avoid uncomfortable feelings of being powerless or helpless for it helps to develop an illusion of control.
Examples of Identification with Aggressor’s
- A son raised by an abusive father unconsciously starts adopting his dressing styles and walking styles as a self protective measure.
- A daughter raised by a critical mother starts to unconsciously imitate some of her traits and behaviours. Later the daughter becomes a mother who’s equally critical in nature.
- A student bullied in school, starts to imitate the bullies behaviours and even way of talking. He would also bully his juniors at home as a way to feel less powerless.
- In Anna Freud’s theory, A kid at the clinic who had introjected his elders traits of punishment towards unacceptable behaviours imitating them immediately the impulse was mentioned by hurling knifes and being aggressive despite being a shy and humble kid by nature.
Effects of Identification with the aggressor.
Identification with the aggressor can have negative and positive Effects for instance;
Continued cycle of aggression for instance; When the Victim imitates the aggressor’s aggression and displaces it on safer victims.
The negative adopted characteristics may also interfere with their personalities negatively, killing one’s authentic personality.
If the child punished decides to identify with the traits pf the parents such as being disciplined and respectful then it may lead to cohesive social skills.