The cognitive approach to explaining depression

Question 1

What does ABC stand for

Answer 1

A= activating event
B= beliefs (result of the event)
C= consequences (of the beliefs)

Question 2

who came up with the ABC model

Answer 2

Ellis

Question 3

what are the 3 types of irrational beliefs?

Answer 3

i-cant-stand-it-it-is: the belief that when something goes wrong, it is a major disaster

utopianism: the belief that life is always meant to be fair
musturbation: the belief that we must succeed

Question 4

what is musturbatory thinking?

Answer 4

thinking that certain ideas must be true in order to be happy. people that have these assumptions are likely to become depressed when they don’t become true

Question 5

who came up with the negative triad?

Answer 5

Beck

Question 6

what maintains the negative triad/causes depression

Answer 6

faulty information processing; dwelling on the negatives. and a negative self schema; a tendency to adopt a negative view of the world (acquired in childhood and activated in situations that resemble the original conditions).

Question 7

what is the negative triad?

Answer 7

irrational and pessimistic view composed of 3 types of negative thinking:

1. negative view of the world
2. negative view of the future
3. negative view of the self

Question 8

what is a strength of the cognitive approach explanation?

Answer 8

practical applications in therapy: both explanations have been applied to CBT which has been found to be the best treatment for depression. these explanations have specific implications for the success of therapy and the therapy supports this. if depression is alleviated by challenging irrational thoughts, it suggests they had a role to play in the first place.

Question 9

what is a limitation of the cognitive approach explanation? (bio)

Answer 9

there are better, alternative explanations such as the biological approach. the cognitive approach ignores biological aspects in depression. research by Khang et al (2005) showed low levels of serotonin in depressed people and a gene related to this ten times more common in people with depression. furthermore the success of drug therapies shows neurotransmitters do play a role. cognitive: too simplistic

Question 10

what is a limitation of cognitive approach explanation? (anger etc..)

Answer 10

ellis and beck explain the basic symptoms of depression, but it is a lot more complicated than this. they struggle to explain more complex symptoms of depression for example extreme emotions and seeing hallucinations. cannot act as a full explanation

Question 11

what is a limitation cognitive approach explanation? (client)

Answer 11

this explanation implies the client is responsible for their disorder, and ignores situational factors that could have played a role, such as family problems or life events.