HESI Mental Health Related

Review HESI Mental Health related questions and content

A client on the psychiatric unit appears to imitate a certain nurse on the unit. The client seeks out this particular nurse and imitates the nurse's mannerisms. The nurse knows that the client is using which defense mechanism?

  • A. Sublimation.
  • B. Identification.
  • C. Introjection.
  • D. Repression.
Correct Answer: B

Rationale: The correct answer is (B) Identification. In this scenario, the client is imitating the nurse's mannerisms, which is a form of identification, a defense mechanism where an individual adopts the characteristics or behaviors of someone they admire or view as powerful. (A) Sublimation involves channeling unacceptable impulses into socially acceptable actions, not imitation. (C) Introjection is the internalization of external qualities or attributes, not imitation. (D) Repression is the unconscious exclusion of painful thoughts or memories from awareness, which is not demonstrated in this case.