Supernormal Respondents Report Fewer Immature and Neurotic Defenses Compared to Credible Respondents.

AIMS: Defense mechanisms are unconscious strategies used to manage anxiety triggered by unpleasant emotions, thoughts, or circumstances. They are commonly assessed through self-report questionnaires, which are known to be susceptible to response biases. This study examined the extent to which supernormality, an extreme form of positive response bias, affects self-reports of defense mechanisms. METHODS: A total of 840 participants completed the Defense Style Questionnaire (DSQ) and the Supernormality Scale-Revised (SS-R). Participants were categorized into a "supernormal" group (26.4%) and a "credible" group (73.6%) based on their SS-R scores. RESULTS: Supernormal respondents reported significantly lower use of both neurotic and immature defenses as well as lower use of most defense styles, compared with credible respondents. CONCLUSIONS: Supernormality seems to be associated with systematic under-reporting of both adaptive and maladaptive defenses. These findings highlight the importance of accounting for response bias when using self-report measures to assess defense mechanisms.