Cognitive Approach To Explaining Phobias

Question 1

Aaron Beck:

Answer 1

Some people are more vulnerable to depression than others, because of their cognitions (the way they think).

Question 2

Beck: Faulty information processing

Answer 2

When depressed we attend to the negative aspects of a situation and ignore the positives. Blow small problems out of proportion and think in ‘black and white.’

Question 3

Beck: Negative Self-Schemas

Answer 3

1. A schema is a package of ideas and information developed through experience. They act as a mental framework for the interpretation of sensory information.
2. A self schema is the package of information we have about ourselves.
3. If we have a negative self-schema we interpret all information about ourselves in a negative way.

Question 4

Negative Triad: Beck

Answer 4

A person develops a dysfunctional view of themselves because of three types of negative thinking:
1. Negative view of the world: Creates the impression that there is no hope.
2. … of the future: Reduce any hopefulness and enhance depression.
3. …. of the self. Enhance any existing depressive feelings because they confirm the existing emotions of low self-esteem.

Question 5

Ellis: ABC Model

Answer 5

1. Good mental health is the result of rational thinking, thinking in ways that allow people to be happy and free of pain.
2. Anxiety and depression (poor mental health) result from irrational thinking, any thinking that interferes with us being happy and free of pain.

Question 6

A: Activating Event

Answer 6

1. Beck’s emphasis was on automatic thoughts, Ellis focused on situations in which irrational thoughts are triggered by external events.
2. We get depressed when we experience negative events and these trigger irrational beliefs.

Question 7

B: Beliefs

Answer 7

1. Musturbation: Must always succeed or achieve perfection.
2. I-can’t-stand-it-itis: It is a major disaster whenever something does not go smoothly.
3. Utopianism: Life is always meant to be fair.

Question 8

C: Consequences

Answer 8

When an activating event triggers irrational beliefs there are emotional and behavioural consequences.

Question 9

E: Supporting Evidence (Beck)

Answer 9

1. A range of evidence supports the idea that depression is associated with the 3 processes.
2. Grazioli and Terry assessed 65 pregnant women for cognitive vulnerability and depression before and after birth.
3. Women judged to have been high in cognitive vulnerability were more likely to suffer post-natal depression.
4. Clark and Beck reviewed research on this topic and concluded that there was solid support for all these cognitive vulnerability factors.
5. These cognitions were seen before depression, may be right about cognition causing depression.

Question 10

E: Practical Application CBT (Beck)

Answer 10

1. Forms the basis of cognitive behaviour therapy.
2. All cognitive aspects of depression ca be identified and challenged in CBT. These include the components of the negative triad that are easily identifiable.
3. A therapist can challenge them and encourage the patient to test whether they are true.
4. Translates well into a successful therapy.

Question 11

E: Doesn’t explain all aspects of depression (Beck)

Answer 11

1. Explains neatly the basic symptoms of depression, depression is more complex.
2. Some depressed patients are deeply angry, Beck cannot easily explain this extreme emotion.
3. Some of them suffer hallucinations and bizarre beliefs.
4. Very occasionally depressed patients suffer Cotard syndrome, the delusion that they are zombies (Jarett 2013). Beck’s theory cannot easily explain these cases.

Question 12

E: Partial explanation (Ellis)

Answer 12

1. Some cases of depression follow activating events, this is called reactive depression. They see it as different from the kind of depression that arises without an obvious cause.
2. Ellis’ explanation only applies without an obvious cause.
3. Only applies to some kinds of depression.

Question 13

E: CBT (Ellis)

Answer 13

1. Has led to successful therapy.
2. Challenging irrational negative beliefs, a person can reduce their depression is supported by research evidence (Lipsky et al).
3. This in turn supports the basic theory because it suggests that the irrational beliefs had some role in the depression.

Question 14

E: Doesn’t explain all aspects of depression (Ellis)

Answer 14

1. Ellis explains why some people appear to be more vulnerable to depression as a result of their cognitions, same limitations as Beck.
2. Does not explain anger, hallucinations or delusions.