cognitive treatments for depression Flashcards
what is CBT?
● the cognitive approach to treat depression
● aims to challenge negative, irrational thoughts
● change behaviour so it is more effective
what is the purpose of CBT?
negative, irrational thoughts must be challenged by the client taking an active role in their treatment
what are some features of CBT?
● clients are encouraged to test the reality of their irrational beliefs through data gathering
● they might be set homework e.g. to record when they enjoyed an event
● this is referred to as the ‘client as a scientist’
● also, situations where negative thinking has occurred can be identified and targeted
● in future sessions, if clients have an irrational belief, e.g. no one is nice to them, the therapist can produce evidence from the homework to prove that the beliefs are incorrect - challenging their hypothesis
what is rational emotional behavioural therapy (REBT)?
● an extension of Ellis’ ABC model
● used to identify and challenge negative thoughts
● ABC + DE
● D = disputing (challenging) irrational beliefs
● E = effect
what do REBT therapists use to challenge the irrational beliefs?
● empirical argument - disputing whether there is evidence to support this irrational belief
● logical argument - disputing whether the negative thought actually follows from the facts
what is the goal of behavioural activation?
● to work with depressed individuals to gradually decrease their avoidance and isolation
● and increase their engagement in activities that have been shown to improve mood
● e.g. exercising, going out to dinner
evaluation
● strengths:
p: evidence of effectiveness
e: researchers studied 327 adolescents in 3 treatment groups, CBT, antidepressants and a
combination of both
After 36 weeks, 81% of CBT group, 81% of antidepressant group and 86% of combination group showed significant improvements with their symptoms of depression
c: good case for treating depression using CBT, or CBT and antidepressants
p: offers long term treatments of depression rather than just treating the symptoms
e: patients learn new thinking skills and techniques - help change irrational thinking into more rational thinking - used independently in future
c: strength as it enables people to be ‘future proof’ and allows them to cope with issues without need to seek more therapy
cheaper and more effective in long term than having someone off and on medication for their whole life
● limitations:
p: may not be suitable for a range of diverse clients
e: CBT requires motivation and commitment and willingness to change thought processes. clients with severe depression may not be able to motivate themselves to engage with cognitive work of CBT and complete homework after each session
complex rational thinking involved in CBT makes it unsuitable for treatment depression in clients with learning disabilities
c: matters because CBT can not be used as sole treatment for all cases, so other methods like medication will be needed
counter: more recent research concluded CBT can be effective for people with learning difficulties, therefore, CBT may be able to treat a wider range of clients than first believed
p: rely on relationship between patient and therapist
e: research shown - quality of relationship between patient and therapist determines overall success of cognitive therapy - rather than any specific techniques
a poor and/or disinterested therapist will reduce the effectiveness of treatment
c: if someone has poor relationship with therapist - they may deteriorate and be back on waiting list to see another therapist, whereas medication does not discriminate and should help everyone recover equally
