Psychopathology - Booklet 3 Flashcards
The behavioural, emotional and cognitive characteristics of depression, The Cognitive Approach to explaining depression: Beck's Negative Triad and Ellis's ABC Model, CBT, Challenging irrational thoughts
define depression
-a mental disorder characterised by low mood and low energy levels
describe behavioural characteristics of depression
-changes to sleeping patterns
(hypersomnia/insomnia)
-activity levels change
(reduced energy levels/ psychomotor agitation so struggle to relax)
-changes to eating patterns
(over/undereating due to appetite changes)
-aggression
(irritability, physical aggression - self harm)
describe emotional characteristics of depression
-lower mood
-low self esteem
-anger
(leads to aggressive behaviour)
describe cognitive characteristics of depression
-poor concentration+ decision making
-absolutist, black and white thinking
-attending to and dwelling on the negative
(ignore positives, biases)
-negative schema
description of beck’s cognitive explanation of depression
-depression results from negative thinking patterns and biases that individuals have about themselves, their experiences and the future
define cognitive biases
-depressed people are more likely to focus on the negative aspects of a situation
define catastrophising
-exaggerating a minor setback and believing that it is a complete disaster
define overgeneralisation
-making a sweeping conclusion based on a single incident
describe negative self schemas
-interpret information about themselves in a negative way
-leading to cognitive biases
describe the negative triad
-cognitive biases and negative self schemas maintain the negative triad:
-negative view of:
-ourselves
-our future
-the world
(these thoughts occur automatically in depression)
description of ellis’ cognitive explanation of depression
-good mental health is the result of rational thinking, which allows people to be happy and pain free, whereas depression is the result of irrational thinking, preventing this
what are the components to ellis’ abc model
-activating event
-belief
-consequence
describe an activating event
-an even that occurs which triggers a belief
describe a belief
-the interpretation of the event which can either be rational or irrational
describe a consequence
-rational beliefs lead to healthy emotional outcomes, whereas irrational beliefs lead to unhealthy emotional outcomes, including depression
AO3 points for the explanations of depression
-application to therapy
-does not explain the origins of irrational thoughts
-alternative explanations suggest it is a biological condition
AO3 - explanations of depression have application to therapy
-cognitive ideas helped develop effective treatments:
-CBT
-REBT
-developed from ellis’ abc model
-these therapies identify + challenge negative, irrational thoughts
-successful to treat depression, supporting cognitive explanations
AO3 - explanations of depression do not explain the origins of irrational thoughts
-most research in this area is correlational
-so unable to determine if negative, irrational thoughts are a cause or a symptom
-so it is possible that other factors such as genes + neurotransmitters cause depression, and irrational thoughts are a side effect of depression
AO3 - there are alternative explanations of depression that suggest its a biological condition
-research on genes and the neurotransmitter serotonin found there were lower levels in depression
-drug therapies eg SSRIs increase serotonin levels and are effective
-which provides support for the role of neurotransmitters in the development of depression
-so the cognitive explanation may be limited as does not take biological factors into account
define CBT
-cognitive behavioural therapy
-involving both cognitive and behavioural elements
describe the behavioural element of CBT
-encourages patients to test their beliefs through behavioural experiments + homework
describe the cognitive element of CBT
-identify irrational, negative thoughts which lead to depression, and replace them with positive ones
name the key components of CBT
-initial assessment
-goal setting
-identifying negative/irrational thoughts and challenging them
-homework
describe becks cognitive therapy for CBT
-help identify negative thoughts in relation to themselves, the world and the future
-patient and therapist work together to challenge these irrational thoughts by discussing evidence for and against
-patient tests validity of their thoughts through homework to challenge and test these - ‘patient as the scientist’
describe ellis’ rational emotional behavioural therapy (REBT)
-developed ABC model to include D (dispute) and E (effect or effective)
-dispute challenges the irrational thoughts
-logical dispute - ‘does the way you think about that situation make sense’
-empirical dispute - ‘where is the evidence your beliefs are true’
-effect is the effect of dispute
AO3 points for CBT
-shown through research to be effective
-CBT requires motivation
-overemphasis on the role of cognition
AO3 - CBT has been shown through research to be effective
-march et al found it is as effective as antidepressants for adolescents
-so suggests it is effective in treating depression as both methods have a great impact
AO3 - counter - CBT has been shown through research to be effective
-a combination of both treatments had the most effective results so effectiveness of CBT on its own may be limited
AO3 - CBT requires motivation
-patients with severe depression may not engage with CBT or attend sessions
-so the treatment will be ineffective
-alternative treatments of antidepressants need less motivation and can be more effective
-matters because it poses a problem for CBT as it may not be effective as the sole treatment for severe depression
AO3 - CBT overemphasises the role of cognition
-suggests a person’s irrational thinking is the primary cause of depression
-so ignores other factors or circumstances contributing to depression such as abuse
-matters because CBT would be ineffective in treating these patients until their circumstances have changed
