Depression - cognitive approach to treating depression

Question 1

Cognitive behavioural therapy

Answer 1

• Begins with an assessment in which the client and the therapist work together to clarify the clients problems
• They identify goals for the therapy and put together a plan to achieve them
• One of the tasks is to identify whether they are just negative or irrational thoughts
• Behaviour element - works to change negative and irrational beliefs and put more effective behaviours into place

Question 2

Beck’s cognitive therapy

Answer 2

• Identify automatic thoughts about the world, future and self
• Once identified, they must be challenged
• CT also aims to help clients test the reality of their negative beliefs
• The therapist might give them homework - e.g record when people are nice to them
• That way, if the client says in future sessions that no one is nice to them, the therapist can show them evidence that is isn’t true

Question 3

Ellis’s REBT

Answer 3

• Rational emotive behaviour therapy (REBT) extends the ABC model to the ABCDE model
• D = Dispute
• E = Effect
• Goal of REBT is to identify and dispute irrational beliefs
• Involves a vigorous argument
• Intended effect is to change the irrational beliefs and so break the link between the negative life events and depression
• Ellis identified different methods of disputing…
  1) Empirical argument - involves disputing whether there is actual evidence to support the negative beliefs
  2) Logical argument - involves disputing whether the negative thought logically follows from the facts

Question 4

Behavioural activation

Answer 4

• Goal is to work with depressed people to gradually decrease their avoidance and isolation and increase their engagement in activities that have been shown to improve mood e.g exercising

Question 5

CBT - Strength

Answer 5

• Evidence supporting its effectiveness for treating depression
• Study = CBT was as effective as antidepressants in treating depression - examined 327 adolescents with a depression diagnosis and looked at the effectiveness of CBT, antidepressants and a combination of the both - after numerous weeks, 81% antidepressants group and 81% CBT group had improved, demonstrating the effectiveness of CBT

Question 6

CBT - Limitation

Answer 6

• Requires motivation
• Clients with severe depression may not engage with CBT
• Therefore this treatment would be ineffective in treating these clients
• Alternative treatments like antidepressants don’t require the same level of motivation and may be more effective in these cases
• Means CBT cannot be used as the sole treatment for severely depressed clients