Cognitive Perspective in Psychology

Definition

Cognitive Perspective: The approach that focuses on

how people think, understand, and know about the
world.
(Robert S. Feldman 2015)
Cognitive Approach
 From the 1920s through the 1960s, behaviorism dominated

psychology in the United States.

 Eventually, however, psychologists began to move away

from strict behaviorism. Many became increasingly

interested in cognition, a term used to describe all the
mental processes involved in acquiring, storing, and using
knowledge.
 Such processes include perception, memory, thinking,

problem solving, imagining, and language. This shift in

emphasis toward cognition had such a profound influence
on psychology that it has often been called the cognitive
revolution.
 The psychological study of cognition became known as

cognitive psychology
Cognition means “the known”, “knowledge”, or “the
process of knowing”
Cognitive approach emphasizes on:
 Thoughts
 Feelings
 Thinking
 Values
 Expectations etc;

factors that determine the personality of the

individual
Main Emphasis

 For a proper understanding of behavior, the cognitive approach

emphasizes the role of mediating processes in human
behavior i.e., the processes that lie between the Environmental
stimuli and the behavioral response
 Focused on how we ‘remember’, how information processing

takes place, how decision making appraisals are done

 Unlike the behaviorist approach, this theory gives same

importance to both the internal state of the person as well as

the environmental events
 Internal events are referred as “Mediators” or “Meditational

Processes”
Areas of Special Interest

Cognitive approach mainly focuses on:

 Emotions

 Social behavior

 Behavior modification

Cognitive approach includes the elements of psychology,

linguistics, computer science and physiology-- thus called a
‘hybrid science’
 Experiments on apes by German scientist Wolfgang
Kohler, discovered the use of insight (A sudden and often
novel realization of the solution to a problem) by them in
problem situations.
 Tolman talked about the ‘cognitive maps’

(relationship between stimulus) __it is not necessary to have

an association between
stimulus and response, a person can learn without showing
any apparent response.
 Both Kohler and Tolman played a vital role inlaying the

foundation of cognitive approach

Emotions and Cognitive Approach

 Pioneer: Stanley Schacter (1971)

 According to him, emotions result from the

physiological arousal as well as the cognitive

appraisal (evaluation) of the situation
 Arousal comes first and is general in nature
 In order to understand what one is feeling i.e., the

title/label of the emotion, and the meaning of one’s

reaction in a particular setting the arousal is appraised
cognitively
Schacter’s Theory of Emotion
 Richard Lazarus (1984) maintains that emotional
experience cannot be understood unless we
understand how what goes on in the environment is
be evaluated. Emotion leads to cognition and
cognition in turn leads to emotional experience.
 John Dollard and Neal Miller (1950) first ever
emphasized the importance of cognitive processes in
determining behavior
Kelly’s Personal Construct Theory
 Developed by George Kelly (1955.)
 Emphasis on how a person cognitively constructs his

world
 Persons develop their behavior cognitively towards

their world and develop attitudes and opinions

accordingly known as’ personal constructs’.
 The constructs then develop into a ‘belief system’ of a

person.
George Kelly (1905-1967)
Biography of George Kelly

 Born on April 28, 1905 on a farm in Perth, Kansas.

 As only child, he received much attention and

affection from his parents.

 Completed his BA in physics and mathematics in

1926 
 Gained his Ph.D. in Psychology in Iowa in 1931.
 He began to work in clinical psychology, he worked

mainly as a clinical psychologist in the USA.

 Developed construct theory as an alternative to

behaviorism.
Kelly’s View of the Person
 Kelly’s personality theory presents an optimistic, even
flattering, image of human nature (Kelly, 1969). Kelly treated
people as rational beings capable of forming a framework of
constructs through which to view the world. He believed we
are the authors, not the victims, of our destiny. His view
endows us with free will, the ability to choose the direction
our life will take, and we are able to change when necessary
by revising old constructs and forming new ones. We are not
committed to a path laid down in childhood or adolescence.
Our direction is clearly toward the future because we
formulate constructs to predict or anticipate events.
Construct Theory

Personal Construct Theory Kelly’s description

of personality in terms of cognitive processes: We are capable of
interpreting behaviors and events and of using this
understanding to guide our behavior and to predict the behavior
of other people. (Schultz & Schultz, 2013)
Like Maslow, Kelly was opposed to behavioral and
psychoanalytical approaches to personality. He viewed them
both are denying the human ability to take charge of their own
lives. He argued that behaviorism viewed person as merely
passive respondents to events in their environment, and that
psychoanalysis viewed person as passive respondents to
unconscious forces.
 The personality theory Kelly offered was derived from his
experience as a clinician. The model of human nature Kelly
developed from his clinical work is unusual. Kelly suggested
that people perceive and organize their world of experiences the
same way scientists do, by formulating hypotheses about the
environment and testing them against the reality of daily life.
 In other words, we observe the events of our life the facts or
data of our experience and interpret them in our own way. This
personal interpreting, explaining, or construing of experience is
our unique view of events. It is the pattern within which we
place them. Kelly said that we look at the world through
“transparent patterns that fit over the realities of which the
world is composed ”(Kelly, 1955). The unique pattern created
by each individual, is what Kelly called our construct system.
CONSTRUCT
 An intellectual hypothesis that we devise and use to

interpret or explain life events. Constructs are bipolar, or

dichotomous, such as tall versus short or honest versus
dishonest.
 A Construct is a person’s unique way of looking at life, an

intellectual hypothesis devised to explain or interpret

events. We behave in accordance with the expectation that
our constructs will predict and explain the reality of our
world. Like scientists, we constantly test these hypotheses.
We base our behavior on our constructs, and we evaluate
the effects.
 we may alter or discard constructs periodically as
situations change. Revising our constructs is a
necessary and continuous process; we must always
have an alternative construct to apply to a situation. If
our constructs were inflexible and incapable of being
revised (which is what would happen if personality
was totally determined by childhood influences), then
we would not be able to cope with new situations.
Kelly called this adaptability constructive
alternativism- The idea that we are free to revise or
replace our constructs with alternatives as needed.
Ways of Anticipating Life Events
 Kelly’s personal construct theory is presented in a
scientific format, organized into a fundamental
postulate and 11 corollaries. The fundamental
postulate states that our psychological processes are
directed by the ways in which we anticipate events
 Kelly’s notion of constructs is anticipatory. We use

constructs to predict the future so that we have some

idea of the consequences of our actions, of what is
likely to occur if we behave in a certain way.
Corollaries of Personal Construct Theory
 The Construction Corollary: Similarities among repeated events Kelly
believed no life event or experience could. be reproduced exactly as it
occurred the first time. An event can be repeated, but it will not be
experienced in precisely the same way. For example, if you watch a movie
today that you first saw last month, your experience of it will be different the
second time. Your mood may not be the same, and during the elapsed month
you were exposed to events that affected your attitudes and emotions.
 The Individuality Corollary: Individual differences in interpreting events,
With this corollary, Kelly introduced the notion of individual differences. He
pointed out that people differ from one another in how they perceive or
interpret an event, and because people construe events differently, they thus
form different constructs. Our constructs do not so much reflect the objective
reality of an event as they constitute the unique interpretation each of us
places on it.
 The Organization Corollary: Relationships among
constructs; We organize individual constructs into a pattern
according to our view of their interrelationships, their
similarities and differences. People who hold similar
constructs may still differ from one another if they organize
those constructs in different patterns.
 The Dichotomy Corollary: Two mutually exclusive
alternatives; all constructs are bipolar or dichotomous. For
example, it is not enough to have a construct about a friend
that describes the personal characteristic of honesty. We must
also consider the opposite, dishonesty, to explain how the
honest person differs from someone who is not honest.
 The Choice Corollary: Freedom of choice; We choose the
alternative for each construct that works best for us, the one that
allows us to predict the outcome of anticipated events. Suppose you
must decide which of two courses to take next semester. One is easy
because it is not much different from a course you’ve already taken.
The other course is more of a gamble. The professor is new and
rumored to be tough, and you don’t know much about the subject.
You must choose between the low-risk, minimal-reward secure
option and the high-risk, high-reward adventurous option.
 The Range Corollary: The range of convenience; Few personal constructs
are appropriate or relevant for all situations. Consider the construct tall
versus short, which obviously has a limited Range of convenience or
applicability. It can be useful with respect to buildings, trees, or basketball
players, but it is of no value in describing a pizza or the weather.
The Experience Corollary: Exposure to new experiences; We continually
test our constructs against life’s experiences to make sure they remain
useful. we evaluate and reinterpret our constructs as our environment
changes.
The Modulation Corollary: Adapting to new experiences; Constructs differ
in their permeability. To permeate means to penetrate or pass through
something. A permeable construct is one that allows new elements to
penetrate or be admitted to the range of convenience. For example, if a
bigoted person applies the construct high intelligence versus low
intelligence in a fixed or impermeable way to people of a certain ethnic
minority group, believing that all members of this group have low
intelligence, then new experiences will not penetrate or alter this belief. The
prejudiced person will not modify that construct, no matter how many
highly intelligent people of that ethnic group he or she meets. The construct
is a barrier to learning and to new ideas because it is incapable of being
changed or revised.
 The Fragmentation Corollary: Competition among constructs;
We may sometimes have contradictory or inconsistent subordinate
constructs within our overall construct system. People may accept
one another as friends in one situation, such as playing a board
game, but may act as adversaries in another situation, such as a
political debate.
 The Commonality Corollary: Similarities among people in
interpreting events; Although our individual constructs are unique
to us, people in compatible groups or cultures may hold similar
constructs. Consider a group of people with the same cultural
norms and ideals. Their anticipations and expectations of one
another will have much in common and they will construe many of
their experiences in the same way. People from the same culture
may show a resemblance in their behaviors and characteristics
even though they are exposed to different life events.
 The Sociality Corollary: Interpersonal relationships;
We try to understand how other people think and
predict what they will do, and we modify our behavior
accordingly. Each person assumes a role with respect to
others. We play one role with a partner, another with a
child, another with our supervisor at work. Each role is
a behavior pattern that evolves from understanding
how the other person construes events. In a sense, then,
we fit ourselves into the other person’s constructs.
Personality development

 How can personal constructs be used to explain

personality differences? Kelly argued that differences
in our behavior largely result from differences in the
way people “construe the world.” 
 Development revolves about the person's attempts to

maximize understanding of the world through the

continuing definition and elaboration of his or her
construct system.
 Suppose two people meet a new individual named Adam.
Person 1: uses friendly-unfriendly, fun loving- stuffy, and
outgoing-shy constructs in forming his template for Adam’s
behavior. 

 Person 2: uses refined-gross, sensitive- insensitive, &

intelligent-stupid constructs. After both individuals interact
with Adam they walk away with different impressions of
Adam. Person 1 believes that Adam is a friendly, fun- loving &
outgoing person, whereas Person 2 thinks that Adam is gross,
insensitive, & stupid. The same situation is interpreted
differently. 
Reflection on Kelly’s Theory

 Kelly developed a unique personality theory that did

not derive from or build on other theories. It emerged
from his interpretation, his own construct system, of
data provided by his clinical practice. It is a personal
view, and its originality parallels its message, that we
are capable of developing the framework for our life.
 Kelly’s system has been criticized on several points. It

focuses on intellectual and rational aspects of human

functioning to the exclusion of emotional aspects.
Reflection on Kelly’s Theory
 Kelly’s theory, like many others, leaves unanswered
questions. Each of us is able to construe events in a
unique way, but why does one person construe an event
in one way while another person construes the same
event in a different way? What process or mechanism
accounts for the difference? A person makes choices
about defining or extending the construct system. What
determines whether to opt for security or for adventure,
for the safer or the riskier alternative?
Tolman’s Purposive Behaviorism

Edward Chance Tolman

(1886 –1959)
Timeline of Tolman’s Life
 Born in Newton, Mass. April 14, 1886
 Died Nov. 19, 1959
 1911: Earned BS from Mass. Institute of Tech. in
electrochemistry
 1912: Introduced to Gestalt psychology
 1915: Earned Doctorate from Harvard-retroactive inhibition
E.C. Tolman Cognitive Theory of
Learning
 Learning as developing from bits of knowledge and cognitions
about the environment and how the organism relates to it. This
was in contrast to the theories of Thorndike who thought of
learning as a strict stimulus-response connection.
 Cognitive Maps: A mental representation of the layout of
one’s environment.
 Tolman conducted experiments with rats and mazes to
examine the role that reinforcement plays in the way that rats
learn their way through complex mazes. These experiments
eventually led to the theory of latent learning.
Latent Learning
 Latent learning which describes learning that occurs in the
absence of an obvious reward. Tolman argued that humans
engage in this type of learning everyday as we drive or walk
the same route daily and learn the locations of various
buildings and objects. Only when we need to find a building
or object does learning become obvious.
 Intrinsic Motivation: A desire to perform an behavior for its
own sake.
 Extrinsic Motivation: Performing a behavior to receive
promised reward or avoid punishment.
 Cognitive Dissonance: This is when a person is trying to
reconcile a conflict between attitudes and actions. In trying to
do so, they often change their attitudes to support the actions
others see. This is why people who like their jobs stay in them
even if they are not pay a lot Or why celebrities complain
about being rich and famous.
 Four Summary Principles
Behavior is purposive
 Behavior is cognitive
 Emphasis on molar aspects of behavior
 Reinforcement establishes and confirms expectancies
Contributions
 Tolman is best remembered for being a pioneer in
cognitive psychology.
 Cognitive maps were a precursor to concepts of spatial

memory and spatial thinking.

 Created a cognitive theory of learning.
 He was well known for his experiments using rats and

maze running.
Cognitive Social Learning Theory

Walter Mischel
(1930-)
Biography
 Mischel was born in 1930 in Vienna, Austria, fleeing with
his family to the United States after the Nazi occupation in
1938.
 He grew up in Brooklyn, New York and studied under
George Kelly and Julian Rotter at Ohio State University,
where he received his Ph.D. in clinical psychology in 1956.
 Mischel taught at the University of Colorado from 1956 to
1958, at Harvard University from 1958 to 1962, and at
Stanford University from 1962 to 1983.
 Since 1983, Mischel has been in the Department of
Psychology at Columbia University in New York City.
Mischel’s View of the Person
 Mischel (1968) posits that individual behavior is
influenced by the specific situation. We behave
consistently in the same manner in different situations only
to the extent that these situations lead to similar
consequences and have similar meaning for the person.
Traits can be helpful in describing behavior, they should
not be seen as the sole determinants of behavior.
 Mischel challenged the underlying notions of “traits”
cross-situational consistency. Mischel and his colleagues
showed that certain prototypical behaviors do have
temporal stability that is often mistaken for cross-
situational consistency.
For example, a prototype of aggressiveness is
objecting to, arguing with, disputing and “putting
down” other people. A student may see displays of
such behavior by a classmate as stable, because the
classmate may show it in the same situation (class)
across may points in time (during more class sessions).
The student’s temporally aggressiveness may be
mistaken for cross-situational consistency, because the
observer fails to recognize that aggressive behavior is
occurring repeatedly in the same situation across time,
not across different situations.
Cognitive Social Learning Theory
 Cognitive social learning theory proposes that the important
factors are cognitive facilities rather than traits. Specifically,
Mischel’s personal cognitive factors are memories of the
previous experiences, that determine strategies and skills the
person employs for producing behavior at the present time. In
interaction terms, Mischel’s theory predicts that the history of
rewards and punishments experienced in a given situation and
skills and strategies developed in that situation will determine
present behaviors. Social learning theory emphasize the
interplay between internal entities or person factors and social
situation that determine behavior. For Mischel, certain
cognitive factors interact with situation to produce behavior.
Basic Concepts: Mischel
 Competency: embraces both the cognitive facility to size
up a situation so that one understands how to operate
effectively in it and the ability to perform behaviors that
will lead to success in that situation. It involves “knowing
what to do” in a situation and being able to do it. Some
people may know that the ability to engage in “small talk”
is critical to success at parties. Others may know the
importance of small talk, but just cannot do it.
 Characterizing Events: associated with a situation is
placing them into meaningful categories. Each situation
tends to be complex; constituted of many components.
Components generate events- which are simply
occurrences that are produced by the components of a
situation. For example, a student may place verbal
events associated with the college class situation into
the “silence is golden” category. Another student may
decide that the college class is the appropriate place
for voicing any opinion that is relevant to the topic at
hand. Which person is most successful will depend
on which “reads” the dominant component of the
situation __the professor__most accurately. Does the
professor prefer “silence is golden” to “free
expression of opinions”?
 Expectancies: is the belief based on past experience that
provides a prediction of future outcomes. An extensive past
history in a situation is likely to give a person a good grasp
of what to expect when certain stimuli are present and
when certain behaviors are performed. For Mischel,
stimulus is a very well-defined component or event
associated with a situation and can be either physical or
behavioral (Mishcel & Shoda, 1995). For example, in a
courtroom, the stimulus can be component of the
situation_the judge_or a behavior_the bailiff’s
verbalization “all rise.” In either case, the stimulus gives
rise to the expectancy of certain outcomes, often behaviors.
Values of Outcomes: how much one prizes results of
behavioral or stimulus occurrences in the ongoing situation.
In fact, success, itself may be defined as effectively
performing the behaviors that yield the outcomes that are
valued by the performer. For example, people familiar with
particular form of psychotherapy will know that clients who
make favorable references to themselves experience a
definite outcome, approval from the therapist.
Self Regulatory Plans: rules, established in advance of
opportunity for behavioral performance, that act as guides
for determining what behavior would be appropriate under
particular conditions. Self regulatory plans involves more
than rules covering a kind of situation, such as being at
party.
Supporting Evidence
Delay of Gratification_ postponing some pleasure so that it
can be enjoyed to the maximum degree or on its most
optimal form. Mischel, Shoda and Rodriguez (1989)
report that enduring individual differences in variety of
self-control have been found as early as the preschool
years. Children of preschool age who, in certain laboratory
conditions, delayed gratification longer than others,
developed into adolescents, who were more competent,
showed higher scholastic performance, and coped better
with frustration/stress. In addition, inability to delay
gratification is related to antisocial behavior such as
aggression and delinquency.
Evaluation:
 Mischel’s new expanded point of view contained serious
ambiguity. “Affect” is now being emphasized, nut its role is
unclear. Does “affect” stand alone or is it part of a
“cognitive/affective package?”
 The rejection of trait and complete absence of them from his
theory has not been well received in some quarters. Certain
theorists and researchers think that Mishcel has overstated his
case.
Cognitive Perspective by Albert Ellis

Alber Ellis
(1913-2007)
Biography
 Ellis was born to a Jewish family in Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania, US, in 1913.
 Albert Ellis held MA and PhD degrees in clinical

psychology from Columbia University and
the American Board of Professional
Psychology (ABPP). He is generally considered to be
one of the originators of the cognitive
revolutionary paradigm shift in psychotherapy and one
of the founders of cognitive-behavioral therapies.
 He died in 2007.
 Albert Ellis believed that psychoanalysis to be the
deepest form of psychotherapy from1947 to 1953, he
practiced classical analysis. After coming to the
conclusion that psychoanalysis was a relatively
superficial and unspecific form of treatment, he
experimented with several other systems. Early in 1955
he combined humanistic, philosophical and behavioral
therapy to form Rational Emotive Therapy now known
as Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy.
View of Human Nature
◦ Although Ellis does not deal with developmental stages, he
does think that children are more vulnerable to outside
influences and irrational thinking than adults.
◦ Believes that human beings are gullible and highly suggestible
and are easily disturbed.
◦ People have within themselves the ability to control thoughts,
feelings and behavior; but they must first become aware of
their self-talk. 
◦ REBT is based on the assumption that human beings are born
with the potential for both rational or straight thinking and
irrational or crooked thinking.
 Man has predisposition for self-preservation (the fact
of protecting oneself in a dangerous or difficult
situation), happiness (thinking and verbalizing
loving)__communication with others and growth and
self-actualization.
 Man also has tendency for self-destruction (avoidance

of thoughts), procrastination (to delay doing something

that you should do, because you do not want to do),
endless repetition of mistakes, superstitions, self-
blame, and avoidance of actualized growth potentials.
 Taking for granted that humans are fallible.
 REBT attempts to help them to accept themselves as
creatures who will continue to mistakes yet at the same
time learn to live more at peace with themselves.
 Ellis has concluded that humans are self-talking, self-

evaluating and self-sustaining (to provide enough of

what someone needs to live or exist).
View of Emotional Disturbance
 We actually learn irrational beliefs from significant
others during childhood.
 Additionally we create irrational dogmas and

superstitions by ourselves.
 Then we actively reinstall self-defeating beliefs by the

process of auto-suggestion and self-repetition and by

behaving if as they are useful.
 It is largely our own repetition of irrational thoughts

that keeps dysfunctional attitudes alive and operative

within us.
 REBT insists that if we are to recover from a neurosis or
personality disorder;
a) We had to stop blaming ourselves and others.

b) We learn to accept ourselves despite our imperfections.

 If we stay we rational beliefs we will not become
inappropriately depressed, hostile and self-pitying.
 Our unrealistic and illogical ideas create disruptive
feelings and also create dysfunctional behaviors.
 Ellis contends that because we largely create our own
disturbed thoughts and feelings, we have the power to
control our emotional destiny because we have the
capacity for self-awareness__we can observe and evaluate
our goals and purposes and thus can change them.
A-B-C Theory of Personality
 The basic tenet of REBT is that;
“Emotional disturbances are largely the product of
irrational, self-defeating thinking”
 From REBT perspective many therapist err by focusing

on the past history activating events, as if anything

could be done to change the client early childhood.
 Ellis would say that this tactic is not too productive.

Instead the client and the therapist work together to

dispute the irrational beliefs that are causing disturbed
emotional consequences.
 They work towards transforming and unrealistic,
immature, demanding and absolutistic kind of thinking to a
realistic, mature and logical approach to thinking and
behaving.
 The A-B-C theory of personality is central to REBT therapy

and practice.
 “A” is the “activating event”
 “B” is the person’s “belief” about “A”
 “C” is the emotional and behavioral “consequences”

REBT explains that ‘A’(activating events) doesn't cause ‘C’

(the emotional and behavioral consequences). Instead ‘B’
which is the person’s belief about ‘A’ largely causes ‘C’
which is the emotional and behavioral consequences.
 For example if a person experiences depression after a
divorce, it may not be the divorce itself that causes the
depressive reaction but the person’s beliefs about being
a failure, being rejected or loosing a mate.

Event Beliefs Behavior

 Thus human beings are largely responsible for creating

their own emotional reactions and disturbances. REBT
helps people to change irrational beliefs that directly
cause the disturbances.
Philosophical Restructuring
Philosophical restructuring to change our dysfunctional personality
involves the following steps;
1. Acknowledging-that we are responsible for creating our own
emotional problems.
2. Accepting-the notion that we have the ability to change these
disturbances significantly.
3. Recognizing-that our emotional and behavioral problems largely
stem from irrational beliefs.
4. perceiving-clearly perceiving these beliefs.

5. Seeing/transforming-seeing the value of disputing such foolish

beliefs using rigorous method. Accepting the fact that if we expect to
change, we had better work hard in emotive and behavioral ways to
counteract our beliefs which cause dysfunctional feelings.
6. Practicing-REBT methods of uprooting or changing disturbed
behavior for the rest of our life.
Therapist’s Roles and Functions
1) Encourages clients to discover a few basic irrational ideas that motivate
and disturbed behavior.
2) Challenges clients to validate their ideas.
3) Demonstrate to clients the illogical nature of their thinking.
4) Uses a logical analysis to minimize these irrational beliefs.
5) Shows how these beliefs will lead to future emotional and behavioral
disturbances.
6) Explains how these ideas can be replaced with more rational ideas.
7) Teaches clients how to apply the scientific approach to thinking so that
they can minimize irrational beliefs and resulting emotional disturbance.
8) Uses many cognitive, emotive and behavioral methods to help
clients work directly on their feelings and act against their
disturbance.
Functions:
1. Building a Rapport: During the first session, focus is on
building rapport. It is a kind of client/therapist relationship
that will encourage the client to talk.
2. Identifying the Problem: Once the collaborative and
therapeutic alliance is formed, therapy proceeds by
identifying those problems that will be targeted for
exploration.
3. Carrying out Behavioral Homework and Assignments
Strengths and Contributions
 Clear, easily learned and effective.
 Can be easily combined with other behavioral

techniques to help clients more fully experience what

they are learning.
 Relatively short-term.
 Has generated a great deal of research and literature.
 Has continued to evolve over the years as its processes

and techniques have been refined.

Limitations and Criticisms
 Not effective for individuals with mental problems or
limitations such as schizophrenics and those with
severe thought disorders.
 Limited usefulness if not combined with behavioral or

emotive techniques.
 REBT’s direct and confrontative way of working with

clients is a limitation for some.

 May not be the simplest way of helping clients change

behaviors or emotions.
Cognitive Model by Aaron T. Beck

Aaron T. Beck
(1921-)
Biography
 Beck was born on July 4, 1921, in Providence, Rhode Island, US, to
Russian Jewish immigrants. 
 Aaron T. Beck was initially trained in psychoanalysis, and also
found Freud’s approach lacking as he remained it in the early 1960s.
 Beck's daughter Judith is a prominent cognitive behavioral
therapy (CBT) educator and clinician, who wrote the basic text in
the field. She is President of the non-profit Beck Institute.
 A psychiatrist who was originally trained as a psychoanalyst. His
approach to mental disorders emphasizes the importance of
cognitive thinking, especially dysfunctional thoughts. Found that
cognitive therapy is effective as a short-term treatment for
depression and general anxiety. 
Cognitive Behavior Therapy
 The approach he developed known as cognitive behavior
therapy, has a number of basic similarities to rationale emotive
behavior therapy e.g.,
1. Active
2. Directive
3. Time limited
4. Research oriented
5. Structured
It is an insight focused therapy that emphasized recognizing
and changing negative thoughts and maladaptive beliefs,
otherwise referred to as schemata.
 Beck’s approach is based on the theoretical rationales that the
people feel and behave is determined by how they perceive
and structure their experience.
 Beck’s theory holds that in order to understand the nature of
an emotional disturbance, it is essential to focus on stream of
thought, the goal is to change the way the clients think and
begin
 To introduce the idea of schemata restructuring
Cognitive Distortion
 Cognitive therapy perceives psychological problems
stemming from cognitive distortion.
 Cognitive distortion means the processes such as

1. Faulty thinking
2. Making incorrect inferences on the basis of incorrect
information
3. Failing to distinguish between reality and fantasy.
Types of Cognitive Distortion
1. Arbitrary Inferences

 It refers to making conclusion without relevant

evidence this include “catastrophizing” or thinking of
absolute worst scenario and outcomes for most
situations.
2. Selective Abstraction
 It consists of forming conclusions based on an isolated

detail of an event. In this process other information and

ignored and significances of the total context is missed.
 3. Overgeneralization
 It is a process of extreme beliefs on the basis of the
single incident and applying them inappropriately to
dissimilar events or settings.

4. Magnification and Minimization

 It consists of perceiving a case or a situation in a
greater or lesser light than it truly deserves
5.Personliaztion
 It is a tendency for individuals to relate external
events to themselves even when there is no basis for
making this.

6. Labeling and Mislabeling

 It involve portraying one’s identity on the basis of
imperfections and mistakes made in the past.
7. Polarized thinking

 It involves thinking and interpreting in all-or-nothing

terms. With such dichotomous thinking events are
labeled in black or white terms.
Clinical Procedure
 Basic procedure sequence of cognitive therapy is
1. Preparing the client by providing a cognitive rationale for
treatment and demystifying treatment.
2. Applying the client to monitor thoughts that accompany
distress.
3. Implementing behavioral and cognitive techniques.
4. Identifying and challenging cognitive through the process of
being in problematic situations that evoke such thoughts.
5. Examining beliefs and assumption by testing them in reality.
6. Preparing clients by teaching them copying skills that will
work against relapse.
Limitations of Cognitive-Behavioral
Therapy
Cultural considerations
 Theory is Eurocentric in that it relies heavily on “logic”

as defined by Western principles.

 If a client comes from a culture that does not encourage

direct confrontation.
 If a client’s culture focuses on “being” rather than

“thinking”