A client who is angry at their employer comes home and yells at their family instead. Which defense mechanism does this BEST illustrate?

Displacement is a defense mechanism in which a person redirects emotions (often anger) from the original, threatening source to a safer, less threatening target — here, redirecting anger felt toward an employer onto family members. Denial is refusing to accept reality; regression is reverting to earlier, more childlike behavior under stress; and projection is attributing one's own unacceptable feelings to someone else. Recognizing common defense mechanisms and matching them to examples is a standard psychosocial concept. Defense mechanisms are largely unconscious ways of coping with anxiety. (This reflects general concepts; verify against current NCLEX prep materials.)