acting out

acting out /act·ing out/ (ak´ting out) the expression of unconscious feelings and fantasies in behavior; reacting to present situations as if they were the original situation that gave rise to the feelings and fantasies.

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acting out,

the expression of intrapsychic conflict or painful emotion through overt behavior that is usually pathologic, defensive, and unconscious and that may be destructive or dangerous. In controlled situations such as psychodrama, Gestalt therapy, or play therapy, such behavior may be therapeutic in that it may serve to reveal to the patient the underlying conflict governing the behavior. See also transference.

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acting out [ak´ting owt]

the habitual expression of unconscious feelings through nonverbal behavior as a means of avoiding the direct experiencing of them; reacting to present situations as if they were the childhood situation that gave rise to the feelings and fantasies, as the acting out of a transference. Often applied imprecisely to any sort of disapproved impulsive behavior.

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acting out

Child psychiatry Self-abusive, aggressive, violent and/or disruptive behavior Psychiatry A form of displacement in which a Pt's behavior is a response to a current situation. See Displacement.