Cognitive Therapies for Depression
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
Name
Aaron Beck
Aims
Teach people new, more productive ways of thinking by exploring / testing
(and then replacing) - maladaptive beliefs.
Methods
– Hypothesis Testing / Reality Testing - Proving that they are wrong.
– Stress Inoculation - Protecting yourself against the worst case
scenario.
– Behaving “as if” (Behavioural Activation) - Make them think about
what it would feel like not to have depression, even if it’s artificial /
false, and then it will become a habit and in turn make you less
depressed.
– Often combined with behavioural techniques (CBT).
Evaluation
Effective with depression and some anxiety disorders.
Modify client’s current behaviour.
Focus on changing the client’s behaviour.
More emphasis on client discovering misconceptions for themselves.
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
Name
Aaron Beck
Aims
Teach people new, more productive ways of thinking by exploring / testing
(and then replacing) - maladaptive beliefs.
Methods
– Hypothesis Testing / Reality Testing - Proving that they are wrong.
– Stress Inoculation - Protecting yourself against the worst case
scenario.
– Behaving “as if” (Behavioural Activation) - Make them think about
what it would feel like not to have depression, even if it’s artificial /
false, and then it will become a habit and in turn make you less
depressed.
– Often combined with behavioural techniques (CBT).
Evaluation
Effective with depression and some anxiety disorders.
Modify client’s current behaviour.
Focus on changing the client’s behaviour.
More emphasis on client discovering misconceptions for themselves.
