Cognitive approach to explaining behaviour

• Depression= a mental disorder characterised by low mood & low energy levels.
• Ellis' ABC Model:

  • Ellis proposed that the key to mental disorders (depression) lay in irrational beliefs.
  • He used the ABC Model to explain how irrational thoughts (cause) affect our behaviour & emotional state (effect).
• The ABC Model records a sequence of events:

  • A-Activating event- sometimes described as a 'trigger'
  • B-Beliefs- thoughts that occur to you when the Activating Event happens.
  • C-Consequences- how you feel & behave when you have those Beliefs, may be divided into your actions & your emotions.
• Positive Example of ABC Model:

  • A-Get dumped by boyfriend/ girlfriend
  • B-'Everything happens for a reason- we weren't right for each other'
  • C-Be hopeful for the future
• 1. Negative Event (A)
  2. Rational Belief (B)
  3. Healthy Negative Emotion (C)
• 1. Negative Event (A)
  2. Irrational Belief (B)
  3. Unhealthy Negative Emotion (C)
• Beck's Negative Triad:

  • Beck believed that depressed individuals feel as they do because their thinking is biased towards negative interpretations of the world (they have a negative schema)
  • Schema= cognitive frameworks/ shortcuts to speed up processing of information.
• Beck's Negative Triad:

  • Depressed individuals have acquired a negative schema- the tendency to adopt a negative view of the world.
  • Negative schemas and expectations maintain what Beck called a negative triad- pessimistic & irrational views of 3 key elements in a person's belief system.
• Beck's Negative Triad:

  Depressed people have acquired a negative schema during childhood, including parental and/or peer rejection & criticisms by teachers (children made to feel stupid etc & consequently internalise these negative thoughts).
• Beck's Negative Triad:

  1. Negative view of the self "I'm ugly/ worthless"
  2. Negative view of the world "No one loves me"
  3. Negative view of the future "I'm hopeless because things will always be this way"
  4. (All forms a triangle)
• • Mustabatory thinking (black & white thinking)- source of irrational beliefs lay in mustabatory thinking- thinking that certain ideas/ assumptions must be true in order for an individual to be happy.
• Ellis identified the three most important irrational beliefs: "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".
• Ellis & Beck Evaluation- Strength:

  • The theory has practical explanations in therapy.
  • The explanations have led to success in therapy (CBT)- by challenging irrational negative beliefs, a person can reduce their depression.
  • This in turn supports the basic theory because it suggests that the irrational beliefs had some role in the depression.
• Ellis & Beck Evaluation- Weakness:

  • Theories do not explain all aspects of depression.
  • Depression is a complex disorder with wide ranging symptoms that affect individuals differently, for instance, some patients are deeply angry & suffer hallucinations & bizarre beliefs.
  • Theories explain mild & moderate symptoms, but not extreme.
• Ellis & Beck Evaluation- Weakness:

  • Blames the client rather than situational factors.
  • Cognitive approach suggests that it is the client who is responsible for their disorder.
  • This may lead to the client & therapist overlooking situational factors- for example, how life events or family problems may have contributed to depression.
• Ellis & Beck Evaluation- Weakness:

  • Negative feelings aren't always irrational- which is what the theories suggest.
  • Sometimes having negative thoughts & feelings is a healthy response to a situation.
  • For example, if you have failed an exam due to lack of work & effort and these feelings are necessary to improve.
  • This is known as depressive realism, and these theories ignore this.