Discuss the cognitive approach to treating depression. (16 marks)
Cognitive psychologists analyse the internal mental processes of a patient, in the case of depression,
they would aid the patient in identifying the cause of their depression through a process of
evaluation. Depression is a neurological disorder, which affects a sizeable percentage of the global
population. Depression also has many characteristics, those being emotional (low mood, anger &
self-harming behaviour) as well as cognitive characteristics such as diminished concentration,
pessimistic thoughts and slow responses/slow decision making. Cognitive psychologists have
developed theories and therapies on how to identify and treat depression.
Cognitive psychologist, Ellis, wanted to gain positive results from his depressed patients, which he
had not been getting when he was a psychoanalyst. Instead, he incorporated more cognitive
methods into his practices when seeking the route of his patient’s depression. Psychoanalysis do not
go into great depth about the mind, they focus on past experiences (much like behaviourists) to find
the cause of an ailment. In 1956, Ellis constructed the ABC model, which allowed him to identify why
his patients were depressed; he believed that depression was a product of irrational thinking and
that those who thought irrationally, would distort neutral events negatively. The ‘A’ refers to the
activation of the event like going shopping and seeing your friend, but they ignore you. ‘B’ denotes
the belief about the situation, so from that event, one would believe their friend did not want to say
hello because they secretly hate them. The ‘C’ means the consequence of that irrational belief, in
this case, one could get angry at their friend, have a low mood, and ignore their friend in future, self-
flagellate because they think they are unworthy of friendship or that they did something wrong.
With the ABC model, the cognitive psychologist would help the patient interpret the interaction
realistically and make them realise their irrationality, Ellis would do this as part of his REBT (Rational
Emotive Behaviour Therapy). This method of therapy is highly esteemed and has provided data to
show that it can be effective in treating depression, it is even provided by the NHS. Being funded by
the NHS denotes that the treatment is effective when treating depression because there are limited
therapies funded, by the NHS, to do so. A criticism of REBT is that it does not explain why people,
with depression, think irrationally. Irrational thinking is not a trait that only depressed people have.
Patients with OCD are also known to have irrational thoughts, but unlike explanations for OCD, the
REBT model & Ellis, does not explain the genetic predisposition some people have to getting
depression. Many studies have shown that depression is linked to the lack of serotonin production,
which could be explained by looking at a patient's genes.
In 1967, Beck, a cognitive psychologist, theorised that depression was a disorder of thought, rather
than one of mood. He says that depression is because of how somebody views themself, their
future, and their world: this is known as the Negative triad. He also states that these negative
thoughts surrounding their future, personality & the world are because of negative schemas, which
can stem from childhood. An example of this could be always being compared at childhood with a
family member, to which you were always the least ‘clever’ or ‘good-looking,’ this could lead to
negative self-schemas, which could have a ‘knock on’ effect with how one would view their future
and the world around them. With the negative triad, Beck also constructed the CBT (Cognitive
Behavioural Therapy) model for treating depression. Cognitive Behavioural therapy was constructed
to have 16 weeks of therapy with 20 sessions, since its creation, this has been decreased. Like REBT,
it is funded by the NHS, however many psychologists have been critical of this method. CBT is
directive and active, it focuses on the present situations of the patient, whilst also having a look at
background information that could explain the negative schemas about themselves, their future, and
the world (negative triad). Even though CBT is funded by the NHS, psychologists Simon et al (1995)
stated that those who have a stubborn and rigid personalities may find it difficult to engage with the
therapy, these people are often resistant to change. In addition, the therapy cannot cure severe
depression that people may feel due to external factors such as finances and their jobs as discussing
Cognitive psychologists analyse the internal mental processes of a patient, in the case of depression,
they would aid the patient in identifying the cause of their depression through a process of
evaluation. Depression is a neurological disorder, which affects a sizeable percentage of the global
population. Depression also has many characteristics, those being emotional (low mood, anger &
self-harming behaviour) as well as cognitive characteristics such as diminished concentration,
pessimistic thoughts and slow responses/slow decision making. Cognitive psychologists have
developed theories and therapies on how to identify and treat depression.
Cognitive psychologist, Ellis, wanted to gain positive results from his depressed patients, which he
had not been getting when he was a psychoanalyst. Instead, he incorporated more cognitive
methods into his practices when seeking the route of his patient’s depression. Psychoanalysis do not
go into great depth about the mind, they focus on past experiences (much like behaviourists) to find
the cause of an ailment. In 1956, Ellis constructed the ABC model, which allowed him to identify why
his patients were depressed; he believed that depression was a product of irrational thinking and
that those who thought irrationally, would distort neutral events negatively. The ‘A’ refers to the
activation of the event like going shopping and seeing your friend, but they ignore you. ‘B’ denotes
the belief about the situation, so from that event, one would believe their friend did not want to say
hello because they secretly hate them. The ‘C’ means the consequence of that irrational belief, in
this case, one could get angry at their friend, have a low mood, and ignore their friend in future, self-
flagellate because they think they are unworthy of friendship or that they did something wrong.
With the ABC model, the cognitive psychologist would help the patient interpret the interaction
realistically and make them realise their irrationality, Ellis would do this as part of his REBT (Rational
Emotive Behaviour Therapy). This method of therapy is highly esteemed and has provided data to
show that it can be effective in treating depression, it is even provided by the NHS. Being funded by
the NHS denotes that the treatment is effective when treating depression because there are limited
therapies funded, by the NHS, to do so. A criticism of REBT is that it does not explain why people,
with depression, think irrationally. Irrational thinking is not a trait that only depressed people have.
Patients with OCD are also known to have irrational thoughts, but unlike explanations for OCD, the
REBT model & Ellis, does not explain the genetic predisposition some people have to getting
depression. Many studies have shown that depression is linked to the lack of serotonin production,
which could be explained by looking at a patient's genes.
In 1967, Beck, a cognitive psychologist, theorised that depression was a disorder of thought, rather
than one of mood. He says that depression is because of how somebody views themself, their
future, and their world: this is known as the Negative triad. He also states that these negative
thoughts surrounding their future, personality & the world are because of negative schemas, which
can stem from childhood. An example of this could be always being compared at childhood with a
family member, to which you were always the least ‘clever’ or ‘good-looking,’ this could lead to
negative self-schemas, which could have a ‘knock on’ effect with how one would view their future
and the world around them. With the negative triad, Beck also constructed the CBT (Cognitive
Behavioural Therapy) model for treating depression. Cognitive Behavioural therapy was constructed
to have 16 weeks of therapy with 20 sessions, since its creation, this has been decreased. Like REBT,
it is funded by the NHS, however many psychologists have been critical of this method. CBT is
directive and active, it focuses on the present situations of the patient, whilst also having a look at
background information that could explain the negative schemas about themselves, their future, and
the world (negative triad). Even though CBT is funded by the NHS, psychologists Simon et al (1995)
stated that those who have a stubborn and rigid personalities may find it difficult to engage with the
therapy, these people are often resistant to change. In addition, the therapy cannot cure severe
depression that people may feel due to external factors such as finances and their jobs as discussing
