Hockenbury Discovering Psychology 5th txtbk

Cognitive Therapies595Table 14.4Irrational Beliefs1. It is a dire necessity for you to be loved or approved by virtually everyone in your community.2. You must be thoroughly competent, adequate, and achieving in all possible respects ifyou are to consider yourself worthwhile.3. Certain people are bad, wicked, or villainous, and they should be severely blamed andpunished for their villainy. You should become extremely upset over other people’swrongdoings.4. It is awful and catastrophic when things are not the way you would very much likethem to be.5. Human unhappiness is externally caused, and you have little or no ability to controlyour bad feelings and emotions.6. It is easier to avoid than to face difficulties and responsibilities. Avoiding difficultieswhenever possible is more likely to lead to happiness than facing difficulties.7. You need to rely on someone stronger than yourself.8. Your past history is an all-important determinant of your present behavior. Becausesomething once strongly affected your life, it should indefinitely have a similar effect.9. You should become extremely upset over other people’s problems.10. There is a single perfect solution to all human problems, and it is catastrophic if thisperfect solution is not found.According to rational-emotive therapy,unhappiness and psychological problemscan often be traced to people’s irrationalbeliefs. Becoming aware of these irrationalbeliefs is the first step toward replacingthem with more rational alternatives. Someof the most common irrational beliefs arelisted here.Source: Based on Ellis (1991).The long-term therapeutic goal of RET is to teach clients to recognize and disputetheir own irrational beliefs in a wide range of situations. However, responding“rationally” to unpleasant situations does not mean denying your feelings (Dryden2009, Ellis & Bernard, 1985). Ellis believes that it is perfectly appropriate and rationalto feel sad when you are rejected, or regretful when you make a mistake. Appropriateemotions are the consequences of rational beliefs, such as “I would preferthat everyone like me, but that’s not likely to happen” or “It would be nice if Inever failed at anything, but it’s unlikely that I will always succeed in everything Ido.” Such healthy mental and emotional responses encourage people to work towardconstructively changing or coping with difficult situations (Dryden & Branch,2008; Ellis & Harper, 1975).Albert Ellis was a colorful figure whose ideas have been extremely influentialin psychotherapy (DeAngelis, 2007). Rational-emotive therapy is a popular approachin clinical practice, partly because it is straightforward and simple. It hasbeen shown to be generally effective in the treatment of depression, social phobia,and certain anxiety disorders. Rational-emotive therapy is also useful in helpingpeople overcome self-defeating behaviors, such as an excessive need for approval,extreme shyness, and chronic procrastination (Butler & others, 2006;David & others, 2009).Aaron T. Beck (b. 1921) In Aaron Beck’scognitive therapy, clients learn to identifyand change their automatic negativethoughts. Originally developed to treat depression,cognitive therapy has also beenapplied to other psychological problems,such as anxiety disorders, phobias, andeating disorders.Aaron Beck and Cognitive TherapyLike Albert Ellis, psychiatrist Aaron T. Beck was initially trained as a psychoanalyst.Beck’s development of cognitive therapy, abbreviated CT, grew out of his researchon depression (Beck, 2004; Beck & others, 1979). Seeking to scientifically validatethe psychoanalytic assumption that depressed patients “have a need to suffer,” Beckbegan collecting data on the free associations and dreams of his depressed patients.What he found, however, was that his depressed patients did not have a need to suffer.In fact, his depressed patients often went to great lengths to avoid being hurtor rejected by others.