To learn about the defeat in World War II was a most intense shock to the Japanese. Various psychological responses developed, and some committed suicide. Defense mech anisms such as denial, negation, isolation, rationalization, intellectualization, and regres sion were observed. The conditions of the occupation were instrumental in letting the Japanese identify with the Occupation Forces in general and General MacArthur in part icular, and identification with the aggressor soon became the most important defense mechanism to deal with the shock of the defeat.
To learn about the defeat in a war is to be placed in an extreme condition which can not be created experimentally. The crisis is extraordinary and the shock is immense. Furthermore, it is not a small number of people who are in such a condition; the residents in the defeated country offer a very unusual opportunity for understanding human beings in large numbers in a state of an intense shock. The purpose of this paper is to ex amine Japanese reactions and responses upon learning about the defeat in World War II in 1945.
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