A nurse is caring for a client who has a new diagnosis of chronic stress. Which of the following findings should the nurse recognize as a manifestation of displacement?

Rationale: A. Bringing questions reflects active coping, problem-solving, and engagement in health care. It demonstrates adaptive behavior, not a defense mechanism such as displacement. B. Refusal of treatment is more consistent with denial, avoidance, or poor coping rather than displacement. Displacement specifically involves transferring emotions from a threatening source to a safer target. C. Displacement is a defense mechanism in which an individual transfers emotions (often anger or frustration) from the original source of stress to a less threatening person or object. In this case, the client is experiencing stress but expresses it by becoming upset with family members, who are not the true source of the distress. D. This reflects projection or rationalization rather than displacement. The client is attributing their behavior directly to another person’s actions rather than shifting emotions to an unrelated target.