Cognitive approach to explaining depression

• Beck's negative triad:


  Cognitive approach to why some people are more vulnerable to depression. Beck suggested three kinds of negative thinking contribute to being depressed.
• Faulty information processing: Beck

  • depressed people attend to the negative aspects of a situation and ignore positives
  • black and white thinking
• Negative self-schema: Beck

  • depressed people interpret all information about themselves in a negative way
• The negative triad: Beck

  • People develop a dysfunctional view of themselves because of three types of negative thinking that occur automatically
  • World, future and self
• The three elements of the negative triad: Beck

  • negative view of the world
  • negative view of the future
  • negative view of the self
• Negative view of the world - Beck

  • Creating the impression that there is no hope anywhere
• Negative view of the future - Beck

  • Thoughts reduce any hopefulness and enhance depression
• Negative view of self - Beck

  • thoughts enhance any existing depressive feelings because they confirm existing emotions of low self-esteem
• AO3 Negative triad - Research support

  Cognitive vulnerability - ways of thinking that may predispose a person to becoming depressed

  Clark and Beck: These cognitive vulnerabilities were more common in depressed people and predicted later depression
• AO3 Negative triad - Real-world application

  Applications in screening and treatment for depression

  Cohen - assessing cognitive vulnerability allows psychologists to screen young people and identify those most at risk of developing depression in the future

  Cognitive behaviour therapy - alter cognitions to make people more resilient
• Ellis's ABC model

  • good mental health is the result of rational thinking
  • irrational thoughts - any thoughts that interfere with us being happy and free from pain
  • ABC model explains how irrational thoughts affect our behaviour and emotional state
• What does Ellis's ABC model stand for?

  • A - activating event
  • B - Beliefs
  • C - Consequences
• Ellis's ABC model - activating event

  • irrational thoughts are triggered by external negative events
  • Failing a test, ending a relationship
• Ellis's ABC model - Beliefs

  • The belief that we must always succeed - MUSTURBATION
  • The belief that it is a major disaster when something doesn't go smoothly - I-CAN'T-STAND-IT-ITIS
  • The belief that life is always meant to be fair - UTOPIANISM
• Ellis's ABC model - Consequences

  • When an activating event triggers irrational beliefs there are emotional and behavioural consequences
• AO3 Ellis ABC - Real-world application

  • Rational emotive behaviour therapy
  • arguing with a depressed person the therapist can alter irrational beliefs that make them unhappy
  • changes negative beliefs and relieve symptoms of depression
• AO3 Ellis ABC - only explains reactive depression and not endogenous depression

  • Reactive depression - depression triggered by life events
  • Endogenous depression - not traceable to life events and is not obvious what leads the person to become depressed
  • Ellis only explains some cases of depression and is therefore only a partial explanation