P - The cognitive approach to explaining depression

Question 1

What are the 2 cognitive approaches to explaining depression?

Answer 1

Ellis’ ABC model (1962)

Beck’s negative triad (1967)

Question 2

What is the ABC model?

Answer 2

A cognitive approach to understanding mental disorder, focusing on the effect of irrational beliefs on emotions.

Question 3

What is the negative triad?

Answer 3

A cognitive approach to understanding depression, focusing on how negative expectations (schema) about the self, world and future lead to depression.

Question 4

What is a schema?

Answer 4

A cognitive framework that helps organise and interpret information in the brain. A schema helps an individual to make sense of new information.

Question 5

What model did Ellis come up with and to explain what?

Answer 5

ABC model to explain depression.

Question 6

What did Ellis propose that the key to mental disorders lays in?

Answer 6

Irrational beliefs.

Question 7

Explain Ellis’ ABC model

Answer 7

A refers to an activating event (e.g. you get fired at work).

B is the belief, which may be rational or irrational (e.g. ‘The company was overstaffed’ or ‘I was sacked because they’ve always had it in for me’).

C is the consequence - rational beliefs lead to healthy emotions (e.g. acceptance) whereas irrational beliefs lead to unhealthy emotions (e.g. depression).

Question 8

What is the A in Ellis’ ABC model?

Answer 8

A refers to an activating event (e.g. you get fired at work).

Question 9

What is the B in Ellis’ ABC model?

Answer 9

B is the belief, which may be rational or irrational (e.g. ‘The company was overstaffed’ or ‘I was sacked because they’ve always had it in for me’).

Question 10

What is the C in Ellis’ ABC model?

Answer 10

C is the consequence - rational beliefs lead to healthy emotions (e.g. acceptance) whereas irrational beliefs lead to unhealthy emotions (e.g. depression).

Question 11

What is musturbatory thinking?

Answer 11

Thinking that certain ideas or assumptions must be true in order for an individual to be happy.

Question 12

What are the 3 most important irrational beliefs identified by Ellis?

Answer 12

I must be approved of or accepted by people I find important.

I must do well or very well, or I am worthless.

The world must give me happiness, or I will die.

Question 13

Draw Ellis’ ABC model of a healthy mind/person

Answer 13

Activating event (A)
              |
Rational belief (B)
              |
Healthy emotion (C)

Question 14

Draw Ellis’ ABC model of an unhealthy/depressed mind/person

Answer 14

Activating event (A)
              |
Irrational belief (B)
              |
Unhealthy emotion (C)

Question 15

When are negative schemas activated in Beck’s model of depression?

Answer 15

Whenever the person encounters a new situation that resembles the original conditions in which these schemas were learned.

Question 16

What do negative schemas lead to in Beck’s model of depression?

Answer 16

Systematic cognitive biases in thinking.

Question 17

What maintains the negative triad?

Answer 17

Negative schemas and cognitive biases.

Question 18

What are the three elements in a person’s belief system (the three factors in Beck’s triad model)?

Answer 18

The self - e.g. I am just plain undesirable, what is there to like? I’m unattractive and seem to bore everyone.

The world (life experiences) - e.g. I can understand why people don’t like me. They would all prefer someone else’s company. Even my boyfriend left me.

The future - e.g. I am always going to be on my own, there is nothing that is going to change this.

Question 19

What does Beck’s negative triad model look like?

Answer 19

Three factors in a triangle - the self, the world and the future - which all affect each other and in the centre there is the core schema which affects and is affected by these three factors.