In an effort to determine if Indian and white adolescents differed in their choice of defense mechanisms, a random sampling of tenth, eleventh and twelfth grade students from 22 Oklahoma public schools were given the Defense Mechanism Inventory. Scores for 170 Indian students and 197 white students assessed five categories of defenses: turning against object, projection, principalization, turning against self, and reversal. No significant differences were determined in any of the five defense categories for Indian and white females. However, differences in choice of defensive strategies were evident for Indian and white males in two categories. Towards the end of the adolescent stage white males were seen to utilize defenses which dealt with conflict through attacking a real or presumed external frustration object more frequently than did Indian males; Indian males did not choose to turn their aggressions and frustrations toward an external frustrating object with the same frequency. When faced with anxiety producing situations contained within the test, Indian males tended to use denial, repression and reaction formation with a higher frequency than did white males. Indian child-rearing practices may facilitate the development of defensive strategies that involve turning aggression toward an external object. (DS)