Regression The core meaning of the term which
underlies the various specialized uses is that of reverting, a going backward, a
retreating; the opposite of progression. Thus, a reverting to an earlier, more
primitive or more childlike pattern of behavior in psychoanalytic theories, it
has a negative implication, i.e., the notion that stress or anxiety is causing
the individual to flee from reality into a more infantile state, but in
cognitive/developmental theories, it refers to a temporary falling back upon an
earlier form of thinking in order to begin to learn how to deal with new
complexity, and is viewed as a way-station in an ultimately progressive
development of
cognitive processing.