our unconscious mind make us act the same way in current situations as we did in the past, even without realizing it. Defense mechanism As a defense mechanism, parataxic distortion protects one from the emotional consequences of a past event. A person may not remember a certain event, or be acting on it consciously, but will act a certain way to protect themselves from an outcome with the use of parataxic distortion. This behavior is a pathological attempt to cope with reality by using unreality. Parataxic distortion is a commonly used psychological defense mechanism. It is not an illness or a disease, but a part of everyday, normal human psychology that can become maladaptive in certain situations. The cognitive abilities used to generate internal models of others are useful in interaction. As we can never truly internalize the full reality of another, we must interact with a shorthand version of them. It's only when we believe that the shorthand version is their reality that this ability can become maladaptive. One may also attempt to coerce or force another to 'fit the mold' and act more according to expectations, more like the idealized version they dream the other as being. This is also pathological. However, all humans engage in parataxic distortion to one extent or another, in one realm or another. It may be to manage emotions within their family, to facilitate communication between them and their spouse, or to imagine a relationship between them and their nation-state. See also References Molnos, A. A Psychotherapist's Harvest. 1998. Grobman, 2003, Attachment Theory, Infancy, and Infant Memory Development Lavine & Heller, 2010, Scientific American Paul Martin Lester, 1996, PICTORIAL STEREOTYPES IN THE MEDIA External links dictionary definition Psychoanalytic terminology