lOMoARcPSD|3013804
Mental Health Exam 2 Study
Guide
Mental Health Nursing (Rasmussen
University)
, lOMoARcPSD|3013804
Mental Health Exam 2 Study Guide
Mood:
Depression: A mood disorder that is widespread issue, ranking high among causes of disability.
Define common symptoms:
Depressed mood
, difficulty sleeping or excessive sleeping
, indecisiveness,
decrease ability to concentrate
, suicidal ideation, increase or decrease in motor activity
, inability to feel pleasure
, increase or decrease in weight of more than 5% of total body weight over 1 month.
Beck’s Cognitive Triad
Aaron T. Beck, one of the early proponents of cognitive therapy, applied cognitive behavioral
theory to depression. Beck proposed that people acquire a psychological predisposition to
depression through early life experiences. These experiences contribute to negative, illogical, and
irrational thought processes that may remain dormant until they are activated during times of
stress (Beck & Rush, 1995).
Beck found that depressed people process information in negative ways, even in the midst of
positive factors that affect the person’s life. Beck believed that three automatic negative thoughts
—called Beck’s cognitive triad—are responsible for the development of depression:
1. A negative, self-deprecating view of self: “I really never do anything well; everyone else
seems smarter.”
2. A pessimistic view of the world: “Once you’re down, you can’t get up. Look around, poverty,
homelessness, sickness, war, and despair are every place you look.”
3. The belief that negative reinforcement (or no validation for the self) will continue: “It doesn’t
matter what you do; nothing ever gets better. I’ll be in this stupid job the rest of my life.”
The phrase automatic negative thoughts refers to thoughts that are repetitive, unintended, and not
readily controllable. This cognitive triad seems to be consistent in all types of depression,
regardless of clinical subtype.
The goal of CBT is to change the way a patient thinks, which will in turn help relieve the
depressive syndrome. This is accomplished by assisting the patient in the following:
Mental Health Exam 2 Study
Guide
Mental Health Nursing (Rasmussen
University)
, lOMoARcPSD|3013804
Mental Health Exam 2 Study Guide
Mood:
Depression: A mood disorder that is widespread issue, ranking high among causes of disability.
Define common symptoms:
Depressed mood
, difficulty sleeping or excessive sleeping
, indecisiveness,
decrease ability to concentrate
, suicidal ideation, increase or decrease in motor activity
, inability to feel pleasure
, increase or decrease in weight of more than 5% of total body weight over 1 month.
Beck’s Cognitive Triad
Aaron T. Beck, one of the early proponents of cognitive therapy, applied cognitive behavioral
theory to depression. Beck proposed that people acquire a psychological predisposition to
depression through early life experiences. These experiences contribute to negative, illogical, and
irrational thought processes that may remain dormant until they are activated during times of
stress (Beck & Rush, 1995).
Beck found that depressed people process information in negative ways, even in the midst of
positive factors that affect the person’s life. Beck believed that three automatic negative thoughts
—called Beck’s cognitive triad—are responsible for the development of depression:
1. A negative, self-deprecating view of self: “I really never do anything well; everyone else
seems smarter.”
2. A pessimistic view of the world: “Once you’re down, you can’t get up. Look around, poverty,
homelessness, sickness, war, and despair are every place you look.”
3. The belief that negative reinforcement (or no validation for the self) will continue: “It doesn’t
matter what you do; nothing ever gets better. I’ll be in this stupid job the rest of my life.”
The phrase automatic negative thoughts refers to thoughts that are repetitive, unintended, and not
readily controllable. This cognitive triad seems to be consistent in all types of depression,
regardless of clinical subtype.
The goal of CBT is to change the way a patient thinks, which will in turn help relieve the
depressive syndrome. This is accomplished by assisting the patient in the following:
