Beck's cognitive therapy

• What is cognitive therapy?

  The application of Beck's cognitive theory of depression
• What is the idea behind cognitive therapy?

  To identify automatic thoughts about oneself, the world and the future (negative triad) - once identified, these thoughts must be challenged
• What does cognitive therapy aim to do as well as challenging automatic thoughts?

  Help clients test the reality of their negative beliefs
• What might clients be set in order to help test the reality of their negative beliefs?

  Homework
• What is examples of homework clients might be set in cognitive therapy?

  To record when they enjoyed an event or when people were nice to them
• What is the 'homework' clients are set in cognitive therapy sometimes referred to as?

  'Client as scientist'
• In future sessions, if clients say no one is nice to them or there is no point in going to events, the therapist can then produce this evidence and use it to prove the client's statements as incorrect