People with mental health conditions seek psychotherapy, which is also known as "talk therapy," to assist them in understanding and dealing with their condition. Aaron T. Beck, M.D., developed cognitive behavioral therapy in the 1970s because he was frustrated with how long traditional psychoanalytic approaches to therapy took. The focuses of cognitive behavioral modification therapy are twofold. A person first learns to identify and correct irrational thought processes, and then learns to change behavior based on these new realizations. The cognitive behavior modification method of therapy has been well established and accepted by recognized organizations such as the Amercian Psychological Assocation and the National Institute of Mental Health.
Defining Personality
According to the school of cognitive behavioral therapy, personality is a three part system composed of thoughts, feelings and events. All events are inherently neutral, with the patient ascribing feelings of good or bad to the event based on his past experiences and thoughts. The therapist works with the patient to identify, examine and change irrational thoughts with a hands-on approach, requiring the patient to complete homework assignments between therapy sessions.
Activating Events
All events that trigger bad feelings are called "activating events" in cognitive behavioral modification therapy. Cognitive behavioral modification therapists teach patients to use the A-B-C method to learn about the relationship between thoughts, feelings and events. The "A" in this acronym is the activating event, the "B" is beliefs, and the "C" is consequence, or how a person feels as a result of the beliefs they hold that are triggered by the event. Meeting new people, for example, is sometimes viewed as a negative event, if the person has an irrational thought that others will hate him.
Thought Patterns
All thoughts are classified as either rational, or reality based, or irrational, or non-reality based when using cognitive behavioral modification therapy. Once the person identifies beliefs she holds about the activating event, the therapist helps her examine the rationality of the belief. Absolute beliefs such as, "I'll never succeed" or "everyone always hates me" are typically irrational.
If the belief is identified as irrational, the therapist helps the patient examine how she first came to adopt the belief, helping her confront and let go of this way of thinking. If someone believes, for example, that "everyone always hates me," the therapist would help the client examine this belief by asking questions such as, "When did you first discover that every single person you meet hates you," or by asking the patient to talk about what evidence he has that people hate him.
Change Your Feelings
Therapists work to help patients modify irrational beliefs and adopt new, reality-based beliefs that are more liberating. A client who thinks "everyone hates me," for example, might discover that some people do in fact like him and adopt a new belief system such as, "some people like me and some do not." This new belief will lead to positive feelings when meeting new people.
References
- Cognitive Therapy Associates: Cognitive Behavioral Thearpy
- Social Anxiety Institute; What Is Comprehensive Cognitive -- Behavioral Therapy?; Thomas A. Richards, Ph.D.
- Stressgroup.com: ABC Worksheet (The ABCs of REBT)-Therapy and Counseling
- "Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology"; Efficacy of Applied Relaxation and Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy in the Treatment of Generalized Anxiety Disorder; T. D. Borkovec, et al.; August 1993
