Cognitive Strategies & Application

Question 1

What are the problems with CBT?

Answer 1

Need intellectual capacity to understand importance of thinking. Need to BELIEVE importance of thinking (can discuss when their thoughts influence emotion). Getting client to do work to change, CBT isn’t passive. A problem may be a part of a person’s self-identity so will be resistant to change.

Question 2

What are automatic thoughts and how do you identify them?

Answer 2

Mostly out of conscious awareness.
Self monitoring diaries, recall thoughts associated with emotion fuelled events, projection (“What do you think I’d be thinking in your situation”), imagine potential problem to provoke thoughts.

Question 3

What are the 6 components of cognitive restructuring?

Answer 3

1. Rationale: purpose & overview of the procedure
2. Identification of client thoughts and schemas during problem situations
3. Introduction and practice of coping thoughts
4. Shifting from self-defeating to coping thoughts
5. Introduction & practice of positive or reinforcing self-statements
6. Homework and follow-up

Question 4

What are some strategies to change automatic thoughts?

Answer 4

Education (thoughts lead to maladaptive behaviours), recognise thinking errors in statements, alt thinking pattern (stop language), thought stopping.

Question 5

What are problem beliefs? How do you get a client to change them

Answer 5

Irrational beliefs. Evaluate the rationality of them e.g. De-centering (getting away from thinking everything is their fault).

Question 6

What are some examples of problem beliefs?

Answer 6

Catastrophising, over-generalisation, all or nothing thinking, selective abstraction, disqualifying the positive, “made me” statements, labelling.

Question 7

Name 4 questions to challenge negative thinking.

Answer 7

1. What is your evidence? (are you confusing a thought with a fact?)
2. What alternatives are there?
3. What is the effect of thinking the way I do?
4. What would be the worst thing that would happen if the thought was true?

Question 8

What is reframing?

Answer 8

Explore how event or situation is typically perceived and offer another view or “frame” for the situation.

Question 9

What are the steps of reframing?

Answer 9

1. Rationale: purpose/overview of procedure
2. Identify how client perceives & feels in problem situation
3. Identify perceptual features that have been overemphasised
4. Identification of alternative perceptions
5. Homework and follow up

Question 10

Why is language important?

Answer 10

Language is an indicator of our thinking and acts to reinforce beliefs by repeating cognitions, functional and dysfunctional. By changing a person’s language it is possible to change their cognitions/perceptions.

Question 11

Identify some problem words. How do you get a client to stop using them.

Answer 11

People act on guilt and problem words reinforce that. Should, ought, must.-> get client to change to could.

Question 12

What is the Renitent Model of Social Awkwardness?

Answer 12

Reframes lack of social skills as a choice not to talk (Can’t-> won’t). It gives the person power over the situation and reduces anxiety.

Question 13

What is the difference between cognition and emotion? Which is love?

Answer 13

Cognition: broad term including thinking, reasoning, conceiving.
Emotion: hard to define. Subjective affect involved state, established by consensus. Gestalt theory recognises 5 emotions: anger, sadness, joy, fear, lust.
Love is quite often considered an emotion however has major cognitive components so there are differences in meaning that need to be addressed when discussing it.

Question 14

How do people learn new behaviours?

Answer 14

Brainstorming, suggestion by others, modelling, necessity.

Question 15

Why is it important to set goals?

Answer 15

Goals represent what client wants to achieve from counselling. Provides direction, focus and motivation. Also helps to formulate treatment strategy and evaluate the outcome of therapy.

Question 16

What are some interviewing techniques to identify goals?

Answer 16

Questions: How would you like counselling to benefit you? What would be different to how things are now? What do you want to be doing, thinking, feeling?
State goals in positive terms.

Question 17

What is a good technique of setting useful goals?

Answer 17

Specific
Measurable
Accepting responsibility
Realistic
Time frame

Question 18

How do you identify the source of a problem?

Answer 18

Most clients don’t accept they may have a hand in the problem.
Ask how they might contribute to situation in a little way. Ask if there is another way they could contribute. List as many LITTLE ways as possible. Then look over list.

Question 19

What are affirmations and how are they done?

Answer 19

Statements a person repeats to themselves to change their beliefs-> behaviour. Often used to change destructive self talk.
Format: short statement, positive, don’t use double negatives, single theme. at least 50 repetitions.