Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is a psychotherapeutic approach that addresses dysfunctional emotions, behaviours, and cognitions through a goal-oriented, systematic process. The name refers to behaviour therapy, cognitive therapy, and to therapy based upon a combination of basic behavioural and cognitive research.
CBT was primarily developed through an integration of behaviour therapy (first popularized by Edward Thorndike) with cognitive therapy (developed by Aaron Beckand and Albert Ellis). While rooted in rather different theories, these two traditions found common ground in focusing on the "here and now", and on alleviating symptoms.
CBT is thought to be effective for the treatment of a variety of conditions; this includes psychotic disorders,
The aims of CBT for psychosis are usually to help the client manage with psychotic symptoms better, to reduce the stress and disability caused by those symptoms and to reduce the risk of relapse. To do this building a collaborative relationship and a formulation which can give an alternative, non-stigmatising account of the symptoms is vital. In spite of the growing support for the role of CBT in treating psychosis, there are factors associated with the experience of psychosis that do not readily lend themselves to this framework. These include issues of reintegration, feeling out of control, and alteration to the sense of self. What is emerging is the concept of flexible psychotherapy. This approach requires a therapist to conceptualise the patient’s issues in a number of ways and adapt the therapeutic strategies to the patient’s needs. Therapeutic orientations may also be integrated. For example, when assisting with psychological adjustment following the first or second episodes, increased adjustment and reduced secondary morbidity (depression and anxiety) has been found if they received a hybrid therapy based on CBT and self-psychology principles called ‘cognitively oriented psychotherapy for early
Cognitive enhancement therapy is based on the premise that schizophrenia is a brain disorder that affects attention and verbal memory, and that these deficits contribute to disorganized thoughts and loss of social competence. This therapy involves a series of interactive drills and exercises, so that patients learn to improve aspects of cognitive function, such as appraisal of social context. Some of the techniques used during cognitive enhancement therapy were adapted from the treatment of traumatic brain injuries, and take advantage of the brain's remarkable plasticity (its ability to form new neural connections that can help people compensate for loss of brain