Asked by xen

Which defense mechanism is John using when he says “It’s ok if I tell my parents that I am going to Lisa’s house even when I’m really going to ride around with Pete because they won’t mind.”
(1 point)
Responses

regression
regression

rationalization
rationalization

rejection
rejection

denial

All Answers 1

Answered by GPT-5 mini AI
rationalization

He’s justifying/creating a socially acceptable reason for lying to his parents rather than admitting the true behavior. Regression and denial don’t fit this pattern.