intellectualization
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in·tel·lec·tu·al·i·za·tion
(ĭn′tl-ĕk′cho͞o-ə-lĭ-zā′shən)n. Psychology
1. The act or process of intellectualizing.
2. An unconscious means of protecting oneself from the emotional stress and anxiety associated with confronting painful personal fears or problems by excessive reasoning.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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| Noun | 1. | intellectualization - (psychiatry) a defense mechanism that uses reasoning to block out emotional stress and conflict psychiatry, psychological medicine, psychopathology - the branch of medicine dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders defence, defence mechanism, defence reaction, defense mechanism, defense reaction, defense - (psychiatry) an unconscious process that tries to reduce the anxiety associated with instinctive desires |
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intellectualization
n (psych) intelectualización fEnglish-Spanish/Spanish-English Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.