CBT as a psychological treatment Flashcards
how many sessions of CBT does an individual usually have?
from 5-20 individual or group sessions
what is the aim of CBT?
to challenge and help modify delusory and hallucinatory beliefs/behaviours
what is the therapy coping strategy enhancement (CSE)?
a common form of CBT used for schizophrenia that is based on the idea that many schizophrenics already have their own ways of coping to deal with their symptoms.
a schizophrenic will be asked questions to establish?
- content of delusions and hallucinations
- triggers for such thoughts
- coping strategies they use to deal with these symptoms.
what are schizophrenics asked to rate?
the different coping strategies they use, the one with the highest rating will be used for CSE.
how does the coping strategy enhancement work?
- the theraputic situation is a collaborative one
- delusions/hallusinations are normalised
- one delusion or hallusination is selected for treatment (most effective existing coping strategy)
- patient is given homework to implement strategy when the delusion/hallusination appears
discussion related to make the strategy even more effective.
A03: how is ‘effectiveness’ a strength to CBT as a psychological treatment to schizophrenia?
Zimmerman (2005) could that CBT was effective in that it was better at treating the positive symptoms of schizophrenia than having no treatment at all. therefore, without treatment, the positive symptoms could still be there 12 months on.
A03: how is ‘effectiveness’ a limitation to CBT as a psychological treatment to schizophrenia?
Addington and Addington (2005) highlighted that the effectiveness of CBT is dependent on the stage of the disorder. its less likely to be effective on the initial acute phase, so self-reflection wouldn’t be appropriate. therefore, it would be better once psychotic symptoms have been stabilised with medication.
AO3: how is ‘appropriateness’ a strength to CBT as a psychological treatment to schizophrenia?
many of the key symptoms of schizophrenia are cognitive in nature. it therefore makes sense that we use a therapy where the focus is on dealing with cognitions to treat it. based on the fact that many schizophrenics already use some form of coping strategy, it makes sense to develop techniques to enhance this.
AO3: how is ‘drop out rate’ a limitation to CBT as a psychological treatment to schizophrenia?
CBT is hard and requires focus and effort that someone suffering with a mental illness doesn’t always have. as a result, many patients drop out so its unlikely to have a great success.
AO3: how is ‘oversimplistic’ a limitation to CBT as a psychological treatment to schizophrenia?
it doesn’t take into account social factors that contribute to the development of schizophrenia. it also ignores the overwhelming evidence that suggests schizophrenias root cause is biological. as a result, a more holistic approach to treatments would be more appropriate.
