Definition: In psychiatry and psychology, devaluation refers to the psychological process of coping with the anxiety caused by ambivalent feelings by having periods of time in which the object of ambivalence is instead viewed as completely flawed, worthless, or as having exaggerated negative qualities.
Devaluation often alternates with the opposite process, idealization, in which the object of ambivalence is viewed as perfect, or as having exaggerated positive qualities.
Pronunciation: de-value-AY-shun
