508- Counseling and Personality Theories Flashcards
1st and 2nd order cybernetics
Cybernetics is grounded in systems counseling theory and general system theories. First Order Cybernetics
Adlerian therapy
Who: Alfred Adler
Part of: individual psychology
A psychoeducational, present/future oriented and brief approach where gaining insight was an important part of the therapeutic process. Direct educational strategies to enhance client awareness were utilized. Multicultural competence is woven into the foundation of this theory as well as cognitive aspects. The principles involved are that attitudes affect behavioral outcomes so looking at the whole individual having purpose and that their behavior is purposeful as well. Human beings are social so maintaining healthy social relationships is a goal from therapy.
Automatic thoughts
Part of: Cognitive Theory/TherapyWho: Aaron BeckWhat: thoughts that arise spontaneously or reflexively following some environmental stimuli. Beck posited that automatic thoughts arise from faulty assumptions and are rooted in core beliefs/schema. Automatic thoughts can be targets of effective cognitive therapy or hypotheses to be tested. The goal of cognitive therapy is to uncover and challenge the core belief underlying automatic thoughts.Downward arrow technique and Socratic questioning are two techniques that can help uncover the deeper root of automatic thoughts. Common cognitive distortions include arbitrary inference, overgeneralization, selective abstraction, personalization, polarized thinking, magnification, or minimization.Example: A client says she texted a friend and asked to hang out this weekend, but hasn’t heard back. When she didn’t hear back immediately, she said she thought, “no one wants to be friends with me; I’m just a drag.” Her therapist recognizes the cognitive distortions of personalization and magnification at play. She uses Socratic questioning to uncover the core belief underlying the automatic thought: “no one wants to be friends with me.”EXAMPLE: Your client is upset because Bob, the new co-worker, won’t talk to her. She states it is because she is worthless and no one likes her. As a therapist conducting Beck’s cognitive therapy, you would view this is an automatic thought riddled with absolute thinking and jumping to conclusions. Your next step might be utilizing the downward arrow technique to get at the deeper schema/core belief.
Behavioral activation
Part of Behavioral therapy/theoryWho: Peter LewinsohnWhat: posits that changing behaviors will improve symptoms (typically of depression). Behavioral activation identifies a client’s avoidance behaviors and potential reinforcing activities. Then it sets up activation strategies to get the client to actively engage in reinforcing activities and thus decrease their avoidance behavior. Peter Lewinsohn pioneered BA as a therapy for depression in which the therapist works systematically to increase the number of constructive and pleasurable activities and events in a client’s life. Sometimes this application is called “activity scheduling”: working with depressed clients to schedule activities that increase the rate of naturally occurring positive reinforcement. Example: Lindsay is in treatment for depression. She is struggling to shower and fulfill daily activities. Her therapist works with her to schedule a shower every other day, and a short walk around the block on the other days. She instructs Lindsay to log these activities, and any accompanying feelings. As a behavioral therapist, she expects these actions to be self-reinforcing and to decrease Lindsay’s depressive symptoms.
Behavioral therapy
Type of psychotherapy that uses principles of learning & conditioning (classical and operant) to reduce maladaptive behaviors & to increase adaptive behaviors.* Originally based upon Pavolv’s theory of classical conditioning & focused on problem bxs that were directly observable - ignored cognitions* Present-focused & generally brief* Behavior therapy began developing as a reaction to psychoanalysis* focus is on the behavior itself and the contingencies & environmental factors that reinforce or maintain the behavior rather than exploring the underlying causes of the behavior* During the course of therapy, the client and the therapist work collaboratively.* Pavlov, Wolpe, Watson & Skinner all contributed to the early development of Behavior Therapy. Clinical example: John is a 12 year old client whose parents brought him to therapy because he has been acting out in school, yelling at his peers when he feels angry, and throwing things in the classroom. The therapist uses principles of behavior therapy in order to reduce these undesired maladaptive behaviors and to increase more adaptive behaviors.
Big five personality model/traits
What: The Big Five personality traits, also known as the five factor model, is a model based on common language descriptors of personality. These descriptors were grouped together using a statistical technique called factor analysis. This widely examined theory suggests five broad dimensions that describe the human personality and psyche. The five factors have been defined as openness to experience, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism, often listed under the acronym OCEAN. Clinical example: Dylann came into therapy because he was experiencing anxiety over the fact that he was unable to pick a major. The counselor gave John the NEO-PI which is based on the big 5 personality model to determine his personality traits and work together to explore different majors and career paths.
Client-centered/person-centered theory/therapy
Person-centered therapy is a humanistic approach first developed by Carl Rogers based on his theory of personality which asserts that humans have a natural tendency towards growth, learning, and change - actualization tendency.Elements of client-centered therapy include:* The therapist trusts the client.* Therapists hold attitudes toward clients of congruence, unconditional regard, and empathic understanding. (Necessary therapeutic conditions)* The therapeutic relationship is the mechanism of change.* Therapists don’t educate clients, interpret their conflicts, or identify faulty thoughts or behaviors; instead, they establish relational conditions that allow clients to engage in natural self-discovery and personal growth.* Psychopathology results from a failure to learn from experience and it continues when clients accept projected parental conditions of worth instead of modifying self concept based on day-by-day personal experiences* Potential weaknesses include: focus on self may not fit all cultures or world views; focus on emotional expression might not fit with other cultures; culturally diverse client may prefer expert advice and directive therapies.Clinical example: Trisha is a person-centered therapist. Her sessions are wide ranging and client driven. She provides continual empathic feedback and an environment that encourages her clients to be their authentic selves. She asks questions to help her clients come to their own conclusions.
Cognitive therapy
What: Cognitive theory asserts that cognition (the mental processes that take place in the brain, including thinking, attention, language, learning, memory and perception) is at the core of human suffering, and that psychological problems can be mastered by correcting misconceptions and learning more adaptive attitudes. The therapist’s job is to help the client modify distress-producing thoughts.Who: Aaron Beck Clinical example: Beth tells her cognitive therapist that whenever she makes a mistake, however small, she feels worthless. The work of therapy will be to target these automatic thoughts with alternate interpretations to ultimately change her schema.
Common factors in psychotherapy
Part of: clinical practiceWhat: theory that proposes that there are certain factors, regardless of specific techniques or theoretical approach, at the heart of successful psychotherapy and treatment. Common factors include:1. Extratherapeutic factors: client factors such as motivation, support within environment.2. Therapeutic alliance: rapport and positive working relationship between therapist and client.3. Expectation: hope for positive outcomesWho: A model developed by Jerome FrankClinical example: Dora has worked with both a client-centered therapist and a cognitive-behavioral therapist. Though their approaches differed, she notes the positive relationship she had with each and her own willingness to change as factors that affected her outcomes.
Conditional vs. unconditional positive regard
Rogerian or person-centered theory maintains that therapists must show unconditional positive regard for their clients. Unconditional positive regard includes acceptance and respect. Through acceptance, therapists lead clients to self acceptance. Conditional positive regard would be when acceptance is given or withheld based on how a client (or person) is acting. Unconditional positive regard is a prerequisite for self-actualization.Clinical example: In a session, a client expresses attitudes toward his partner that the therapist finds personally repulsive. She maintains an open and accepting posture towards her client despite her personal feelings because she believes unconditional positive regard is key to the therapeutic relationship.
Conditions of worth
A term coined by Carl Rogers, conditions of worth are the standards that children and adults believe they must meet to be acceptable and worthy of love. These conditions lead individuals toward an external locus of evaluation. When conditions of worth are placed on a people, they will deny parts of their self-concept in order to meet these conditions. Conditions of worth cause incongruence between the real and ideal self and ultimately to pathology. Clinical example: Denise’s parents had very strict standards for acceptable ways of thinking and acting. Emotional support was withheld when she breached these standards. As an adult, Denise struggles to feel secure in her relationships because she expects such conditions of worth to be present.
Countertransference
A term developed by Sigmund Freud and related to psychoanalytic theory, countertransference is a process that occurs in therapy when the therapist projects past feelings or attitudes about something in their own lives onto the client, thereby distorting the way they perceive and react to the client and contributing to bias. It is important for the therapist to be aware of countertransference because it leads to confusing and/or harmful reactions in therapy. Clinical example: Listening to a client discuss her resentment towards her mother brings up strong feelings in her therapist, who also has a troubled relationship with her own mother.
Cultural self-awareness
Cultural self-awareness is a competency of multi-cultural therapists, and entails a therapist understanding her own cultural background and biases.Example: Dylan is a white male therapist who grew up in a middle class family. When he works with clients who have different cultural identities, be they racial, socioeconomic, or sexuality differences, he takes care to be aware of his own blind spots and biases based on his different cultural life experience.
Defense mechanisms
A Freudian concept, defense mechanisms are automatic, unconscious, and ward of unacceptable impulses and distort reality. People use them to preserve the integrity of their self-image and keep their ego from experiencing anxiety. Defense mechanisms can also be used as coping mechanisms to protect against psychological harm/stress. Freudian psychology states that normal, healthy individuals do use defense mechanisms, which only become unhealthy when they lead to maladaptive behaviors. Defense mechanisms include: * repression: forgetting an emotionally painful memory * denial: more forceful than repression * projection: pushing unacceptable thoughts and impulses on another person * reaction formation: expressing the opposite of an unacceptable impulse * displacement: shifting a sexual or aggressive impulse to a less dangerous person (kicking the dog) * rationalization: excessive explanation to justify behavior * regression: reverting to less sophisticated method of doing things * sublimation: sexual or aggressive energy channeled into something positive (creative tasks or hard work, house cleaning)Clinical example: Cindy is abused by her father, but she expresses extreme favoritism and affection for him. She is using the defense mechanism of reaction formation.
Externalizing conversations
Part of: Constructive therapies (narrative therapy, solution-focused therapyWhat: a therapeutic technique in which clients push their problems outside the intrapsychic realm. Through problem externalization, clients can dissociate from problems, look at them from greater distances, and develop strategies for eliminating them. This technique helps clients who are distressed because they blame themselves for the problems or pain they are experiencing.Ex: Joel is in treatment for a heroin addiction. He has been in treatment before and feels somewhat helpless in the face of the addiction. His therapist steers him towards an externalizing conversation with the question, “How long have you been working against this opiate problem?”
