In the last month, Stacey, an intelligent and astute employee, has finished only half the work she was scheduled to complete

In addition, she has been taking frequent leaves, citing her ill health as the reason, but her manager suspects she has been playing truant. When the manager confronted her about her pending work, Stacey gave excuses: the work was time-consuming, she was unwell, and it was not a high-priority project in the first place. In this scenario, Stacey is using a(n) ________ impression management technique.
A) self-focused
B) assertive
C) aggressive
D) defensive
E) ingratiation-based

D
Explanation: D) When one provides explanations of a predicament-creating event aimed at minimizing the apparent severity of the predicament, it represents a defensive IM technique.