intellectualization
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intellectualization
[in″tĕ-lek″choo-al-ĭ-za´shun]an unconscious defense mechanism in which reasoning is used to avoid confronting an objectionable impulse and thus to defend against anxiety.
Miller-Keane Encyclopedia and Dictionary of Medicine, Nursing, and Allied Health, Seventh Edition. © 2003 by Saunders, an imprint of Elsevier, Inc. All rights reserved.
in·tel·lec·tu·al·i·za·tion
(in'te-lek'chū-ăl-i-zā'shŭn),An unconscious defense mechanism in which reasoning, logic, or focusing on and verbalizing intellectual minutiae used in an attempt to avoid confrontation with an objectionable impulse, affect, or interpersonal situation.
[L. intellectus, perception, discernment]
Farlex Partner Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012
intellectualization
(ĭn′tl-ĕk′cho͞o-ə-lĭ-zā′shən)n. Psychology
1. The act or process of intellectualizing.
2. An unconscious means of protecting oneself from the emotional stress and anxiety associated with confronting painful personal fears or problems by excessive reasoning.
The American Heritage® Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2007, 2004 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
intellectualization
Psychiatry The use of reasoning in response to confrontation with unconscious conflicts and accompanying stressful emotionsMcGraw-Hill Concise Dictionary of Modern Medicine. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
in·tel·lec·tu·al·i·za·tion
(in'tĕ-lek'shū-ăl-ī-zā'shŭn)An unconscious defense mechanism in which reasoning, logic, or focusing on and verbalizing intellectual minutiae is used in an attempt to avoid confrontation with an objectionable impulse, affect, or interpersonal situation.
[L. intellectus, perception, discernment]
Medical Dictionary for the Health Professions and Nursing © Farlex 2012
intellectualization
A DEFENCE MECHANISM in which a personal problem is analysed in purely intellectual terms, the emotional aspects being deliberately excluded.Collins Dictionary of Medicine © Robert M. Youngson 2004, 2005