Synonyms
Definition
In his chapter on “Definitions,” Jung (1921/1989) describes compensation as having to do with “balancing,” “adjusting,” and “supplementing” in relation to psychological processes so that through the operation of compensation, the psyche is able to self-regulate. Jung thereby understood compensation to be “a basic law of psychic behaviour” (Jung 1928/1993: 153) so that if any attitude is overdeveloped in consciousness, a corresponding compensation will emerge from the unconscious to bring the psyche back into balance.
Introduction
Compensation is the concept Jung used to describe the psyche’s self-regulating tendency much like the concept of homeostasis in biology. Since psychic balance is achieved by adjusting and supplementing any component within the psyche which is overdeveloped or overemphasized, compensation became a central concept within Jung’s psychology. Given that such a compensatory...
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
References
Evans, R. (1976). Jung on elementary psychology: A discussion between C. G. Jung and Richard I. Evans. Mount Vernon: Dutton & Co.
Jacobi, J. (1973). The psychology of C. G. Jung. New Haven: Yale Uni Press.
Jung, C. G. (1918/1991) The role of the unconscious. In Civilisation in transition (pp. 3–28). CW 10. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Jung, C. G. (1921/1989) Definitions. In Psychological types (pp. 408–486). CW6. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Jung C. G. (1928/1990) Individuation. In Two essays in analytical psychology (pp. 173–187). CW 7. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Jung, C. G. (1928/1993) The practical use of dream analysis. In The practice of psychotherapy (pp. 139–161). CW 16. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Jung, C. G. (1930/1991) The complications of American psychology. In Civilisation in transition (pp. 502–514). CW 10. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Jung, C. G. (1931/1991a) The structure of the psyche. In The structure and dynamics of the psyche (pp. 139–158). CW 8. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Jung, C. G. (1931/1991b) Mind and Earth. In Civilisation in transition (pp. 29–49). CW 10. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Jung, C. G. (1943/1990) On the psychology of the unconscious. In Two essays on analytical psychology (pp. 9–119). CW 7. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Jung, C. G. (1946/1991) The fight with the shadow. In Civilization in transition (pp. 218–226). CW 10. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Jung, C. G. (1948/1991) On the nature of dreams. In The structure and dynamics of the psyche (pp. 281–297). CW8. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Jung, C. G. (1951/1991) On synchronicity. In The structure and dynamics of the psyche (pp. 520–531). CW 8. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Jung, C. G. (1952/1991) Synchronicity: An acausal connecting principle. In The structure and dynamics of the psyche (pp. 417–519). CW 8. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Jung, C. G. (1953/1993) Letter to Père Bruno. In The symbolic life (pp. 673–678). CW 18. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Jung, C. G. (1968/1992) Introduction to the religious and psychological problems of alchemy. In Psychology and alchemy (pp. 1–37). CW 12. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Section Editor information
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2016 Springer International Publishing AG
About this entry
Cite this entry
Merchant, J. (2016). Compensation. In: Zeigler-Hill, V., Shackelford, T. (eds) Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28099-8_1368-1
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28099-8_1368-1
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-28099-8
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-28099-8
eBook Packages: Springer Reference Behavioral Science and PsychologyReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences