Navigating the Sojourner's Plight: A Psychoanalytic Lens on Self-Defense Mechanisms Utilized by International Students in Coping with Academic Anxiety

The pursuit of higher education is a transformative journey fraught with challenges that can induce significant academic anxiety among college students. In the face of these formidable stressors, students often unconsciously employ self-defense mechanisms as adaptive responses to alleviate psychological strain. This preliminary study explored three objectives: identifying the prevalence of different self-defense mechanisms used by college students, understanding the relationship between demographic factors and the specific mechanisms adopted, and investigating the impact of these mechanisms on emotional regulation, social behavior, self-perception, and attribution of responsibility. Grounded in Sigmund Freud's pioneering psychoanalytic theory, this study employed a quantitative research design, utilizing the Defense Style Questionnaire (DSQ) to assess self-defense mechanisms among 27 college students. The findings revealed repression, rationalization, and sublimation as the most prevalent mechanisms employed, with significant correlations between demographic factors and specific defense mechanisms. For instance, being female correlated positively with repression and denial, while higher education levels correlated positively with rationalization. Furthermore, the study explored the potential consequences of self-defense mechanisms on various aspects of well-being and functioning. Immature mechanisms like denial and projection were associated with increased psychological distress and poorer academic performance, while mature mechanisms like humor and sublimation were linked to better emotional regulation and academic outcomes. While providing valuable insights, the study highlighted gaps in understanding the relationships between defense mechanisms and other psychological frameworks, as well as the need for broader exploration across educational stages and cultural contexts. Addressing these limitations through future research promises a more comprehensive understanding of psychological well-being in academic settings and the development of tailored interventions to promote adaptive coping strategies among college students.