Cognitive approach to explaining depression

Question 1

What are the two cognitive explanations for depression?

Answer 1

• Becks negative triad
• Ellis’s ABC model

Question 2

What does the cognitive approach say creates a vulnerability to depression?

Answer 2

a persons cognitions (mental processes)

Question 3

What did Beck suggest is the first part to this cognitive vulnerability to depression?

Answer 3

1) faulty information processing - focusing on the negative aspects of a situation and ignoring the positives
- blow small things out of proportion

Question 4

What did Beck suggest is the second part to this cognitive vulnerability to depression?

Answer 4

• negative self schema> a package of information people have about themselves
• having a negative self-schema means a person may interpret all information about themselves in a negative way

Question 5

What did Beck suggest is the third part to this cognitive vulnerability to depression?

Answer 5

• Beck suggested that a person develops a dysfunctional view of themselves because of three types of negative thinking that occur automatically: these three elements are called the negative triad:
• negative view of the world (no hope anywhere)
• negative view of the self, (‘I am a failure’)
• negative view of the future. (‘no chance the economy will get better’)
  > make a person more vulnerable to depression

Question 6

What did Ellis argue anxiety and depression are a result of?

Answer 6

• irrational thoughts

Question 7

How did Ellis define irrational thoughts and what did she design to explain how it affects our behaviour?

Answer 7

• thoughts that interfere with us being happy and free from pain
• she developed the ABC model to explain how irrational thoughts affect our behaviour

Question 8

What does the A stand for in the ABC model and explain?

Answer 8

• Activating event- the event that has taken place which triggers thoughts and feelings e.g. break up

Question 9

What does the B stand for in the ABC model and explain?

Answer 9

• Beliefs- the underlying thoughts about what the event means ( can be rational or irrational)

Question 10

What are the range of irrational beliefs that Ellis identified?

Answer 10

-‘musturbation’ - the belief you must always succeed
-‘I- can’t -stand-it-itis’ - its a major disaster if something doesn’t go smoothly
- Utopianism- belief life is always meant to be fair
- Catastrophising
- absolutist thinking

Question 11

What does the C stand for in the ABC model and explain?

Answer 11

• Consequences- the resulting emotions, thoughts & feelings
  rational beliefs=healthy emotions
  irrational beliefs- unhealthy emotions e.g. may trigger depression

Question 12

What is a strength of Beck’s cognitive model of depression?

Answer 12

• research to support
• Cohen et al -measured & tracked the cognitive vulnerability of 473 adolescents.
• showed that cognitive vulnerabilities were more common in depressed people and predicted later depression
• show there is an association between cognitive vulnerability and depression

Question 13

What is another strength of Beck’s cognitive model?

Answer 13

• is its application in screening and treatment for depression
• Cohen et al > concluded that assessing cognitive vulnerability allows psychologists to screen young people, identifying those at risk of developing depression in the future & monitoring them
• understanding of cognitive vulnerability can can also be applied in CBT which work by altering cognitions that make people vulnerable to depression
• strong real word app> useful in clinical practice

Question 14

What is one strength of Ellis ABC model?

Answer 14

• real-world application in the psychological treatment of depression
• Ellis approach to cognitive therapy is called rational emotive behaviour therapy (REBT)
• idea of REBT is that by vigorously arguing with a depressed person the therapist can alter irrational beliefs that make them unhappy
• Evidence that REBT can change negative beliefs and relieve symptoms of depression
• real-world value

Question 15

What is a limitation of Ellis ABC model of depression?

Answer 15

• only explains reactive depression and not endogenous depression
• Ellis’s ABC model argues depression is often triggered by life events (activating event) =reactive depression
• However, many cases of depression are not traceable to life events & not obvious what leads to the depression at a particular time
• Ellis ABC= partial explanation as it only explains some cases of depression