According to Zastrow and Hessenauer (2019), our perceptions determine how we interpret the messages we receive during communication. There are
several factors that can affect our perception, including defense mechanisms, which are socio-psychological factors that can influence what we perceive
and, in many cases, derail effective communication.Identify the defense mechanism at work, explain your reasoning, then use Gibb’s analysis of defensive communication to explain how the defensiveness might be overcome.
An employer tells a recent college graduate that they know more because they went to the “school of hard knocks,” and “you think you’re better than the rest of us—well, I’ve got news for you—you’re not! I’ve forgotten more than you will ever know about this business!”