ABSTRACT
The predominant psychodynamic perspective is that déjà vu reflects the mind’s effort to quickly block the emotional distress aroused by the present experience by shifting into a distorted state of consciousness and
forcing an artificial “familiar” interpretation of the present new experience. The anxiety-provoking stimulus is blocked (Boesky, 1969; MacCurdy, 1924, 1928) or displaced into the past (Arlow, 1992) so that it does not need to be confronted. In addition, the déjà vu reduces anxiety through bit of self deception: If I have already experienced the present situation, I must have successfully coped with it before and emerged intact (Arlow, 1986, 1992; Neppe, 1983a). Thus, there is no need to be anxious. Within this framework, Myers and Grant (1972) have suggest that déjà vu is especially common in agoraphobics as a coping strategy to ameliorate the continual confrontation with anxiety provoking stimuli.
