Defense mechanisms are strategies employed by the ego to reduce anxiety and avoid conflict.

Why are people more likely to marry individuals with social and cultural backgrounds very similar to their own? a. parents and other family members always exert pressure to marry within the group. b. people spend a great deal of time alone, and therefore can have few opportunities for meeting people. c. people develop irrational fears of out-group members and are scared to date them. d. people have greater access to individuals like themselves.

Does this sound good? hey great britain, we need to talk. we’ve been through a lot these past couple of years and i don’t think that i would’ve made it this far without you but, i think it’s time that i tried to. don’t get me wrong, i think you’re a pretty great country! you’re smart, you’re funny, you're rich, and very dominant but, these past couple of years you’ve been a little too dominant. as each year goes by you become more and more self-absorbed. you’re only concerned about your own well-being. for example, when we get into arguments you always raise the taxes on paper and tea prices; it just isn’t fair. not only are you selfish but, you always want your buddies around. it’s not very fun cleaning up after you and your british soldiers (you guys never put the toilet seat down). they’re always popping up unexpected, and you always force me to let them stay for a couple of days. not to mention how irresponsible you are. i don’t like it when you force some of your responsibility on me. it’s not my fault that you got yourself into another war so, why should i have to pay for it? listen, in the beginning, what we had was good but, you and i aren’t so compatible anymore. i think it’s best if i took some time to be independent and think for myself for once. -yours truly, the states

Einar sees alexandra every day across the room in his history class but has never talked with her. einar likes the way alexandra looks, including the way she dresses and how she wears her hair. he's even more attracted to her apparent intelligence and the way she handles herself in class discussions and during interactions with the instructor. he'd like to know more about her, so he asks one of his friends about her. einar, using a passive strategy to gain information about her, is probably in the preinteraction awareness stage of any relationship that might develop between them. t/f