Keyword: «age-related crises»

This article presents an analysis of the concept of "psychological defense mechanisms" in the works of Russian and international scholars. Ambivalence is noted, and the classification of psychological defenses proposed by R. Plutchik, G. Kellerman, and H. Conte is presented. Using Plutchik's model, the age-related dynamics of the development of psychological defense mechanisms are traced from preschool childhood to adolescence. It is shown how cognitive maturation, age-related crises, and the nature of the social environment determine the formation, restructuring, and consolidation of psychological defense mechanisms.