Is Projection Detectable by the Offender?

[Dreamer]

The word “projection” seems to be used quite often, and certainly, it can be apparent to others when one IS projecting, but I’m curious to know if the person doing the projection is always aware they are doing it? Is it always an active shift of focus or is it at times unbeknownst to the guilty party?

How can one recognize they are projecting if it is perhaps, not always an active, conscious, effort?

 

[Lark]

The word “projection” seems to be used quite often, and certainly, it can be apparent to others when one IS projecting, but I’m curious to know if the person doing the projection is always aware they are doing it? Is it always an active shift of focus or is it at times unbeknownst to the guilty party?

How can one recognize they are projecting if it is perhaps, not always an active, conscious, effort?

????

 

[rav3n]

The word “projection” seems to be used quite often, and certainly, it can be apparent to others when one IS projecting, but I’m curious to know if the person doing the projection is always aware they are doing it? Is it always an active shift of focus or is it at times unbeknownst to the guilty party?

How can one recognize they are projecting if it is perhaps, not always an active, conscious, effort?

Can you spot it in yourself?

 

[Dreamer]

????

I swear it must be the most commonly used psychology term used outside the profession that I’m aware, and this is in real life, not specifically on this forum.

 

[Icedream]

I see it a lot, too.

 

[Dreamer]

Can you spot it in yourself?

That’s what I wonder (generally speaking) If the person “projecting” is ever aware of it. The times I was made aware of it personally, seemed to only be because others have pointed it out to me. But this thread isn’t about me or anyone specifically, it’s a tangential thought.

 

[Lord Lavender]

Its a mixed bag for me. I can often understand and notice when I am projecting onto others in some way and the easiest way to not project is to put yourself in others shoes and try and think outside of yourself so to speak like a fish would try and need to understand the needs of a air breather and by projecting their oceanic habits onto us land lubbers its useless they get no where and its the same with humans.

 

[rav3n]

That’s what I wonder (generally speaking) If the person “projecting” is ever aware of it. The times I was made aware of it personally, seemed to only be because others have pointed it out to me. But this thread isn’t about me or anyone specifically, it’s a tangential thought.

The reason I asked the question is that we can learn a lot about others through ourselves. We can also learn a lot about ourselves through others.

That said, real psychological projection comes from the unconscious mind and if so, the logical response would be 'no'.

 

[Lark]

I swear it must be the most commonly used psychology term used outside the profession that I’m aware, and this is in real life, not specifically on this forum.

In my experience its not something that anyone has knowledge of doing.

There's a bunch of other things besides projection what about transference and rationalisation? I used to know more than this, my memory is going, there were about five or six ideas from psychoanalysis/psychodynamics that I knew off the top of my head.

They are ego defences arent they?

 

[Dreamer]

The reason I asked the question is that we can learn a lot about others through ourselves. We can also learn a lot about ourselves through others.

That said, real psychological projection comes from the unconscious mind and if so, the logical response would be 'no'.

The bolded is something I would say I am intimately familiar with, and I can’t say whether I do one or other more as the process works within continuously and rather fluidly, on both a conscious and exact level and on a more intuitive, hazy sort of level.

Perhaps I’m speaking of something else entirely (I haven’t taken any classes in psychology or read any books), but what if someone makes a conscious effort, to “see” the world a certain way as a form of protection, maybe in the hopes of fooling themselves into thinking something is in fact, a certain way. If this is a form of projection (or again, maybe I’m thinking of something else entirely), I suppose, would there be a way to snap out of that self-deceit? Or to snap someone else out of it?

 

[Dreamer]

In my experience its not something that anyone has knowledge of doing.

There's a bunch of other things besides projection what about transference and rationalisation? I used to know more than this, my memory is going, there were about five or six ideas from psychoanalysis/psychodynamics that I knew off the top of my head.

They are ego defences arent they?

Ahh, yes, I think this might be the general, broad category I am interested in. Not projecting, specifically, but ego defenses. I’m not sure.

 

[Norexan]

Often, especially for ESxJ users, unless of course you are IxFP when you know who are and what is you values.

 

[rav3n]

The bolded is something I would say I am intimately familiar with, and I can’t say whether I do one or other more as the process works within continuously and rather fluidly, on both a conscious and exact level and on a more intuitive, hazy sort of level.

Perhaps I’m speaking of something else entirely (I haven’t taken any classes in psychology or read any books), but what if someone makes a conscious effort, to “see” the world a certain way as a form of protection, maybe in the hopes of fooling themselves into thinking something is in fact, a certain way. If this is a form of projection (or again, maybe I’m thinking of something else entirely), I suppose, would there be a way to snap out of that self-deceit? Or to snap someone else out of it?

One way is to provide concrete proof and see if they still deny the situation.

 

[Lark]

One way is to provide concrete proof and see if they still deny the situation.

Just so long as its not the old psycho-analytic trope that if you deny you are projecting then its just evidence of resistance.

Resistance!!!

I knew there was another one I was forgetting!! Resistance, that's the one I was forgetting.

 

[Tater]

It's entirely possible to project that someone else is "projecting."

Now there's a doozy.

 

[rav3n]

Just so long as its not the old psycho-analytic trope that if you deny you are projecting then its just evidence of resistance.

Resistance!!!

I knew there was another one I was forgetting!! Resistance, that's the one I was forgetting.

Has anyone ever told you that you're all over the place, rarely sticking to the topic of the thread and rarely discussing anything in earnest and in good faith?

 

[Icedream]

Has anyone ever told you that you're all over the place, rarely sticking to the topic of the thread and rarely discussing anything in earnest and in good faith?

And how is this relevant to the thread? In fact, it's very relevant.

 

[Dreamer]

It's entirely possible to project that someone else is "projecting."

Now there's a doozy.

Now THIS sounds sexy. (No wait! Now my mind is going down some unspeakable places )

 

[Coriolis]

That’s what I wonder (generally speaking) If the person “projecting” is ever aware of it. The times I was made aware of it personally, seemed to only be because others have pointed it out to me. But this thread isn’t about me or anyone specifically, it’s a tangential thought.

I don't know. I won't claim to have a better understanding of the (my) unconscious mind than the next person. I can say that often when I find fault with someone else, whether I articulate that or not, I often find myself thinking, "but I sometimes do that, too". In other words, I readily see the failings of others in myself, and after formulating the critical thought about them, I turn my attention back to myself to examine it more closely there.

 

[prplchknz]

It's entirely possible to project that someone else is "projecting."

Now there's a doozy.

I think i may have done this. Either that or no one was