DEPERSONALIZATION

in psychology, a state in which an individual feels that his self or the outside world is unreal. In addition to a sense of unreality, depersonalization may involve the feeling that one's mind is dissociated from one's body; that the body extremities have changed in relative size; that one sees oneself from a distance; or that one has become a machine. Mild feelings of depersonalization occur during the normal processes of personality integration and individuation of a high percentage of adolescents and young adults and need not impair social or psychological functioning. Such feelings may also occur in adults after long periods of emotional stress. When significant social or occupational impairment continues, an individual is considered to have a disorder which should be treated. Feelings of depersonalization may also be present as secondary symptoms in disorders such as depression, hysteria, or schizophrenia. According to Sigmund Freud's psychoanalytic theory, since ego is the representative of reality, depersonalization is a result of impairment of ego functioning. Depersonalization is often interpreted as a defensive reaction to an unconscious need to escape from an intolerable or threatening reality. The term depersonalization has also been used to refer to social alienation resulting from the loss of individuation in the workplace and the community.