HBSE2: FILIPINO PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL WORK
MODULE 4: COGNITIVE BEHAVIORAL THEORIES
MODULE/TOPIC
COGNITION
It is a thinking process, an act of learning something new by using senses, reasoning, creativity, memory,
judgment, problem-solving, and focused concentration. Cognition also means knowing.
COGNITIVE BEHAVIORAL THEORY
Cognitive Behavioral Theory or CBT is a study that focuses on how people think, perceive, retain, and respond to stimuli. It is linked to
neuroscience, linguistics, and philosophy. It aims to improve decision-making and memory retention and is crucial for understanding
human behavior, thoughts, emotional responses, and emotional quotients. Understanding cognitive behavior is essential for
comprehending its implications.
It examines the mental processes involved in learning and understanding, cognitive theory explains human behavior. It started by
drawing comparisons between the human brain and a powerful computer and has since been used in learning, sociology, psychology,
cognitive science, and sociology.
COGNITIVE BEHAVIORAL THERAPY
● In the 1960s, Aaron T. Beck developed Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) or Cognitive Therapy. Since then, it has been
extensively researched and found to be effective in a large number of outcome studies for psychiatric disorders including
depression, anxiety disorders, eating disorders, substance abuse, and personality disorders.
● No history of CBT is complete without mention of Albert Ellis who was also developing a form of cognitive therapy at the
same time as Beck. Ellis’ work became Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) and shares many similarities with CBT.
CBT theory suggests that our thoughts, emotions, body sensations, and behavior are all connected and that what we think and do
affects the way we feel.
According to the American Psychiatric Association, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) helps people identify and change thinking and
behavior patterns that are harmful or ineffective, replacing them with more accurate thoughts and functional behaviors. It can help a
person focus on current problems and how to solve them. It often involves practicing new skills in the “real world”.
CBT aims to teach people that it is possible to have control over your thoughts, feelings and behaviors. CBT helps you to challenge
and overcome automatic beliefs, and use practical strategies to change or modify your behaviour. The result is more positive feelings,
which in turn lead to more positive thoughts and behaviors.
CBT focuses on changing unhelpful or unhealthy thoughts and behaviours. It is a combination of 2 therapies: ‘cognitive therapy’ and
‘behaviour therapy’. The basis of both these techniques is that healthy thoughts lead to healthy feelings and behaviours.
Cognitive Therapy
The aim of cognitive therapy is to change the way you think about an issue that’s causing concern. Negative thoughts cause
self-destructive feelings and behaviours.
Behavior Therapy
The aim of behaviour therapy is to teach you techniques or skills to alter your behaviour. Behavior therapy also teaches children and
their families how to strengthen positive child behaviors and eliminate or reduce unwanted or problem behaviors.
THREE ASPECTS OF COGNITION
1. Automatic thoughts - shape both the individual’s emotions and their actions in response to events.
2. Cognitive distortions - Errors in logic are quite prevalent in patients with psychological disorders. They lead individuals to
erroneous conclusions.
● Dichotomous thinking: Things are seen regarding two mutually exclusive categories with no shades of gray in
between.
● Overgeneralization: Taking isolated cases and using them to make wide generalizations.
● Selective abstraction: Focusing exclusively on certain, usually negative or upsetting, aspects of something while
ignoring the rest.
● Disqualifying the positive: Positive experiences that conflict with the individual’s negative views are discounted.
● Mind reading: Assuming the thoughts and intentions of others.
● Fortune telling: Predicting how things will turn out before they happen.
● Minimization: Positive characteristics or experiences are treated as real but insignificant.
● Catastrophizing: Focusing on the worst possible outcome, however unlikely, or thinking that a situation is
unbearable or impossible when it is just uncomfortable.
● Emotional reasoning: Making decisions and arguments based on how you feel rather than objective reality.
● “Should” statements: Concentrating on what you think “should” or “ought to be” rather than the actual situation you
are faced with or having rigid rules which you always apply no matter the circumstances.
● Personalization, blame, or attribution: Assuming you are completely or directly responsible for a negative
outcome. When applied to others consistently, the blame is the distortion.
3. Underlying beliefs or schemas - Underlying beliefs shape the perception and interpretation of events. Belief systems or
schemas take shape as we go through life experiences.
● Core Beliefs
- The central ideas about self and the world
- The most fundamental level of belief
- They are global, rigid, and overgeneralized
Examples of dysfunctional core beliefs:
- “I am unlovable”
● Intermediate Beliefs
- Consist of assumptions, attitudes, and rules
- Influenced in their development by the core beliefs
Examples of dysfunctional intermediate beliefs:
- “To be accepted, I should always please others.”
BIASED THINKING
Cognitive behavioral therapy recognizes that any of our thoughts, beliefs, or rules can be more or less accurate ways of perceiving the
world. Trying to avoid every negative event, thought, or emotion is a losing battle and would in any case be counterproductive. More
important is that our thinking can be inaccurate. And because our feelings are influenced by the way we think, we often experience
negative emotions because we believe inaccurate things. Thoughts can become biased for many reasons:
● We are fed incorrect information. An example is a child may come to believe something bad about themselves because
they are suggestible and because they don’t have an accurate view of how the world works.
● We ‘think fast’ and take shortcuts. Human beings are not robots and we take shortcuts and make mistakes in our thinking.
The psychologist Daniel Kahneman described how these shortcuts are ‘hardwired’ in his book Thinking fast and slow.
● Beliefs perpetuate themselves. We may pay attention in biased ways which serves to maintain our biased thinking.
CBT AS A ‘DOING THERAPY’
CBT is a great way of understanding what is keeping a problem going and when we are armed with that information our job is to take
action in order to get it ‘unstuck’. What makes CBT different is that it is not just a ‘talking therapy’. Psychologists have found that to be
really helpful, a therapy has to help you to make changes in your life and so it is better to think of CBT as a ‘doing therapy’.
Therapists who use CBT are trained to pay particular attention to any sequences that appear to get stuck in a loop or jammed (where
an action feeds back to cause more of the problem).
Some of the most common CBT strategies for change are:
● Facing your fears. Exposure is an old behavior therapy technique and is one of the most effective treatments for anxiety.
● Testing your beliefs and assumptions. The CBT model says that our beliefs and assumptions – the meanings we make of
the world around us – are responsible for our suffering.
● Replacing unhelpful habits. Often, with the best of intentions, we develop unhelpful habits. Sometimes these are called
‘safety behaviors’ and they can keep problems going.
● Learning new skills. Sometimes our problems persist because we just don’t know how to live any differently.
USES OF CBT
CBT was originally developed by Aaron Beck as a treatment for depression, but it was quickly adapted to treat a wide range of mental
health conditions. Emotional problems that CBT is used to treat include:
- Depression
- Anxiety (including generalized anxiety disorder, panic attacks and panic disorder, and social anxiety disorder)
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and dissociative disorders such as depersonalization and derealization
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
- Eating disorders including anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa
- Personality disorders
- Psychosis and unusual beliefs
- Low self-esteem
- Physical health problems including chronic pain, tinnitus, and long-term conditions
- Medically unexplained symptoms including fatigue and seizures.
COGNITIVE BEHAVIORAL THEORY IN CLINICAL SOCIAL WORK
Social workers use cognitive behavioral methods to help clients reframe limiting or negative behaviors. They guide individuals through
steps to understand their behavior, including the thought processes leading up to it. Social workers may use exposure therapy,
meditation, journaling, or other tools to help clients overcome anxiety and fears. Clients with depression, obsessive-compulsive
disorder (OCD), and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) respond well to cognitive behavioral methods
CBT seems a natural fit for the Clinical social work setting when it works related to human behaviour. CBT does the same work on
human behaviour using the technical expertise or technical method. When social work does the work on human behaviour it comes
under the general connectivity to knowing the problem of an individual. Knowing the problem is as important as the resolution of the
problem.
We can now describe that CBT application revolves around clinical social work and clinical social work revolves around CBT. Cognitive
behavioral therapy is the most appropriate technique of social work that always helps social workers with coordinating Cognitive
Behavioral therapists utilizing a combination of cognitive and behavioral intervention strategies to address clients' present problems.
When Social workers intervene with behavioral issues, they select appropriate intervention strategies after conducting a thorough initial
assessment to clarify how thoughts, emotions, and behaviors are interrelated.
REFERENCES:
American Institute for Cognitive Therapy (2022), What is cognitive therapy?, BetterHealth.
Beck, J. S. (1995). Cognitive therapy: Basics and beyond. New York: Guilford press.
Chand S., Kuckel D., Huecker M. (2023), Cognitive Behavior Therapy, StatPearls Publishing.
Hayes, H. (2023), Cognitive Theory, Study.com.
Tyagi, P. & Chowdhary, R. (2022). Significance of Clinical Social Work Intervention in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy: A Review Article.
International Journal of Indian Psychology, 10(4), 1830-1839. DIP:18.01.174.20221004, DOI:10.252 15/1004.174
University of Nevada Reno, 11 Important Social Work Theories and Methods, n.d.
HBSE2: FILIPINO PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL WORK
MODULE 3: COGNITIVE BEHAVIORAL THEORIES
DICTIONARY
1. Aaron T. Beck In the 1960s, Aaron T. Beck developed Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) or
Cognitive Therapy. Since then, it has been extensively researched and found to
be effective in a large number of outcome studies for psychiatric disorders
including depression, anxiety disorders, eating disorders, substance abuse, and
personality disorders
2. Albert Ellis Albert Ellis who was also developing a form of cognitive therapy at the same
time as Beck. Ellis’ work became Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT)
and shares many similarities with CBT.
3. Attribution Assuming you are completely or directly responsible for a negative outcome.
When applied to others consistently, the blame is the distortion.
4. Automatic Thoughts Shape both the individual’s emotions and their actions in response to events
5. Behavior Therapy The aim of behaviour therapy is to teach you techniques or skills to alter your
behaviour.
6. Blame Assuming you are completely or directly responsible for a negative outcome.
When applied to others consistently, the blame is the distortion.
7. Catastrophizing Focusing on the worst possible outcome, however unlikely, or thinking that a
situation is unbearable or impossible when it is just uncomfortable.
8. Cognition It is a thinking process, an act of learning something new by using senses,
reasoning, creativity, memory,
judgment, problem-solving, and focused concentration. Cognition also means
knowing.
9. Cognitive Behavioral Theory Cognitive Behavioral Theory or CBT is a study that focuses on how people
think, perceive, retain, and respond to stimuli. It is linked to neuroscience,
linguistics, and philosophy.
10. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) helps people identify and change thinking
and behavior patterns that are harmful or ineffective, replacing them with more
accurate thoughts and functional behaviors.
11. Cognitive Behavioral Therapists Cognitive Behavioral Therapists utilize a combination of cognitive and
behavioral intervention strategies to address clients' present problems.
12. Cognitive Distortions Errors in logic are quite prevalent in patients with psychological disorders. They
lead individuals to erroneous conclusions
13. Cognitive Therapy Cognitive therapy aims to change the way you think about an issue that’s
causing concern. Negative thoughts cause self-destructive feelings and
behaviors.
14. Core Beliefs The central ideas about self and the world. The most fundamental level of
belief. They are global, rigid, and overgeneralized.
15. Dichotomous Thinking Things are seen regarding two mutually exclusive categories with no shades of
gray in between.
16. Disqualifying the Positive Positive experiences that conflict with the individual’s negative views are
discounted.
17. Emotional Reasoning Making decisions and arguments based on how you feel rather than objective
reality.
18. Fortune Telling Predicting how things will turn out before they happen.
19. Intermediate Beliefs Consists of assumptions, attitudes, and rules. Influenced in their development
by the core beliefs.
20. Mind Reading Assuming the thoughts and intentions of others.
21. Minimization Positive characteristics or experiences are treated as real but insignificant.
22. Overgeneralization Taking isolated cases and using them to make wide generalizations.
23. Personalization Assuming you are completely or directly responsible for a negative outcome.
When applied to others consistently, the blame is the distortion.
24. Schemas Belief systems or schemas take shape as we go through life experiences.
25. “Should” Statements Concentrating on what you think “should” or “ought to be” rather than the actual
situation you are faced with or having rigid rules that you always apply no
matter the circumstances.
26. Selective Abstraction Focusing exclusively on certain, usually negative or upsetting, aspects of
something while ignoring the rest.
27. Underlying Beliefs Underlying beliefs shape the perception and interpretation of events. Belief
systems or schemas take shape as we go through life experiences.
HBSE2: FILIPINO PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL WORK
MODULE 3: COGNITIVE BEHAVIORAL THEORIES
QUIZ/EXAM
Name: Score:
Course/Year/Section: Date:
1. It is a thinking process, an act of learning something new by using senses, reasoning, creativity, memory,
judgment, problem-solving, and focused concentration.
a. Cognitive
b. Cognition
c. Conclusion
d. Cognitive behavior
2. He developed Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) or Cognitive Therapy.
a. Albert Ellis
b. John Locke
c. Aaron Beck
d. Isaac Newton
3. It is a study that focuses on how people think, perceive, retain, and respond to stimuli.
a. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
b. Cognitive Behavioral Theory
c. Behavioral Theory
d. Cognitive Theory
4. It is to change how you think about an issue causing concern.
a. Cognitive Theory
b. Behavioral Theory
c. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
d. Cognitive Behavioral Theory
5. It teaches you techniques or skills to alter your behavior.
a. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
b. Cognitive Behavioral Theory
c. Behavioral Theory
d. Cognitive Theory
6. This Shapes the perception and interpretation of events. Belief systems or schemas take shape as we go through life experiences.
a. Automatic Thoughts
b. Cognitive distortion
c. Cognitive Behavior
d. Underlying beliefs
7. This shapes both the individual’s emotions and their actions in response to events.
a. Cognitive Behavior
b. Underlying beliefs
c. Automatic Thoughts
d. Cognitive distortion
8. It is errors in logic are quite prevalent in patients with psychological disorders.
a. Underlying beliefs
b. Automatic Thoughts
c. Cognitive distortion
d. Cognitive Behavior
9. It is Focusing on the worst possible outcome, however unlikely, or thinking that a situation is unbearable or impossible when it is just
uncomfortable.
a. Catastrophizing
b. Mind reading
c. Minimization
d. Fortune telling
10. Things are seen regarding two mutually exclusive categories with no shades of gray in between.
A. Dichotomous thinking
B. Minimization
C. Emotional reasoning
D. Selective abstraction
11. It is Taking isolated cases and using them to make wide generalizations.
A. Emotional reasoning
B. Overgeneralization
C. Dichotomous thinking
D. Mind reading
12. It is Positive characteristics or experiences are treated as real but insignificant.
A. Mind reading
B. Minimization
C. Behavior Therapy
D. Automatic thought
13. It is Focusing exclusively on certain, usually negative or upsetting, aspects of something while ignoring the rest.
A. Mind reading
B. Cognitive distortions
C. Selective abstraction:
14. Predicting how things will turn out before they happen.
A. Fortune telling
B. Disqualifying the positive
C. Should Statement
D . Automatic thoughts
15. Making decisions and arguments based on how you feel rather than objective reality.
A. Should statement
B. Emotional reasoning
C. Selective abstraction
D. Behavior Therapy
