Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
4/22/12
Cognitive Therapy & CBT
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An Introduction to Cognitive Therapy & Cognitive Behavioural Approaches
By Dr Greg Mulhauser, Managing Editor
Cognitive therapy (or cognitive behavioural therapy) helps the client to uncover and alter distortions of thought or perceptions which may be causing or prolonging psychological distress.
Underlying Theory of Cognitive Therapy
The central insight of cognitive therapy as originally formulated over three decades ago is that thoughts mediate between stimuli, such as external events, and emotions. As in the figure below, a stimulus elicits a thought — which might be an evaluative judgement of some kind — which in turn gives rise to …show more content…
(Some practitioners use Ellis’s ABC model, described on our page about rational emotive behaviour therapy, to describe the role of thoughts or attitudes mediating between events and our emotional responses.) Two ancillary assumptions underpin the approach of the cognitive therapist: 1) the client is capable of becoming aware of his or her own thoughts and of changing them, and 2) sometimes the thoughts elicited by stimuli distort or otherwise fail to reflect reality accurately.
A common ‘everyday example’ of alternative thoughts or beliefs about the same experience and their resulting emotions might be the case of an individual being turned down for a job. She might believe that she was passed over for the job because she was fundamentally incompetent. In that case, she might well become depressed, and she might be less likely to apply for similar jobs in the future. If, on the other hand, she believed that she was passed over because the field of candidates was exceptionally strong, she might feel disappointed but not depressed, and the experience probably wouldn’t dissuade …show more content…
A more salient criticism for some clients may be that the therapist initially may fulfil something of an authority role, in the sense that they provide problem solving experience or expertise in cognitive psychology. Some people may also feel that the therapist can be ‘leading’ in their questioning and somewhat directive in terms of their recommendations.
Best Fit With Clients
Clients who are comfortable with introspection, who readily adopt the scientific method for exploring their own psychology, and who place credence in the basic theoretical approach of cognitive therapy, may find this approach a good match. Clients who are less comfortable with any of these, or whose distress is of a more general interpersonal nature — such that it cannot easily be framed in terms of an interplay between thoughts, emotions and behaviours within a given environment — may be less well served by cognitive therapy. Cognitive and cognitive-behavioural therapies have often proved especially helpful to clients suffering from depression, anxiety, panic and obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Further Reading on Cognitive
Cognitive Therapy & CBT
Home » Therapy » Types of Counselling and Psychotherapy »
An Introduction to Cognitive Therapy & Cognitive Behavioural Approaches
By Dr Greg Mulhauser, Managing Editor
Cognitive therapy (or cognitive behavioural therapy) helps the client to uncover and alter distortions of thought or perceptions which may be causing or prolonging psychological distress.
Underlying Theory of Cognitive Therapy
The central insight of cognitive therapy as originally formulated over three decades ago is that thoughts mediate between stimuli, such as external events, and emotions. As in the figure below, a stimulus elicits a thought — which might be an evaluative judgement of some kind — which in turn gives rise to …show more content…
(Some practitioners use Ellis’s ABC model, described on our page about rational emotive behaviour therapy, to describe the role of thoughts or attitudes mediating between events and our emotional responses.) Two ancillary assumptions underpin the approach of the cognitive therapist: 1) the client is capable of becoming aware of his or her own thoughts and of changing them, and 2) sometimes the thoughts elicited by stimuli distort or otherwise fail to reflect reality accurately.
A common ‘everyday example’ of alternative thoughts or beliefs about the same experience and their resulting emotions might be the case of an individual being turned down for a job. She might believe that she was passed over for the job because she was fundamentally incompetent. In that case, she might well become depressed, and she might be less likely to apply for similar jobs in the future. If, on the other hand, she believed that she was passed over because the field of candidates was exceptionally strong, she might feel disappointed but not depressed, and the experience probably wouldn’t dissuade …show more content…
A more salient criticism for some clients may be that the therapist initially may fulfil something of an authority role, in the sense that they provide problem solving experience or expertise in cognitive psychology. Some people may also feel that the therapist can be ‘leading’ in their questioning and somewhat directive in terms of their recommendations.
Best Fit With Clients
Clients who are comfortable with introspection, who readily adopt the scientific method for exploring their own psychology, and who place credence in the basic theoretical approach of cognitive therapy, may find this approach a good match. Clients who are less comfortable with any of these, or whose distress is of a more general interpersonal nature — such that it cannot easily be framed in terms of an interplay between thoughts, emotions and behaviours within a given environment — may be less well served by cognitive therapy. Cognitive and cognitive-behavioural therapies have often proved especially helpful to clients suffering from depression, anxiety, panic and obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Further Reading on Cognitive