2 . Innocent Critic
This defence mechanism is very similar to the Innocent Bystander , only this one avoids guilt by actively criticising the world and people around them . Criticising is our way of rebelling against society and wanting to find a way out , of wanting to be outside of the ‘ herd ’ while still feeling a sense of false participation . Don ’ t get me wrong : critical thought is a necessary instrument in any person ’ s self-growth . But often these “ critics ” use critical thinking as a way of boosting their ego and to feel smarter than the ‘ herd ’ who haven ’ t realised what the critic has . Unfortunately , noticing what ’ s wrong with the state of affairs of the world isn ’ t enough unless you actively apply a solution to the problem .
3 . Blameless Victim
I ’ m sure we ’ ve all come across an angry victim of life , someone who blames other people or the world for 100 % of their difficulties . But everyone uses blame as a defence mechanism to some extent . In truth , what we ’ re defending ourselves from is our own responsibility for dealing with the unpleasant experience we ’ ve been given .
To indulge in blame is to give up personal responsibility and mentally delegate it to someone else , convincing ourselves that we are not responsible for the state of our lives , and instead blaming it on some “ outside force .” The blameless victim ego defence mechanism blocks us from seeing clearly just how we are contributing to our own suffering .
Essentially , the blameless victim is one of the fiercest protectors of our ego . It causes us to feel that we ’ re never failing ourselves , or that we lack the maturity or strength to come to terms with the reality of the situations we ’ re confronted with . Instead , whatever happened is not evidence of our own inadequacy , but of someone else ’ s .
4 . Almighty Controller
Finally , we come to the almighty controller – the ego role that adopts a guise of invincibility as a way of trying to misguidedly protect us . Let ’ s take a moment to stop and appreciate this well-meaning part of us : after all , it just