Cognitive Restructuring
“a multistep process that involves: (1) eliciting problematic cognitions known as automatic thoughts or negative automatic thoughts of the self, world, or future, (2) formulating rational responses to these negative automatic thoughts by (3) identifying and removing cognitive distortions found in the automatic thoughts and (4) correcting false beliefs, assumptions, predictions and so on, using a Socratic dialogue.”Read more
Anger Thought Challenging Record
Worksheet
Barriers Abusers Overcome In Order To Abuse
Information Handout
Before I Blame Myself And Feel Guilty
Exercise
Behavioral Experiment
Worksheet
Behavioral Experiment (Portrait Format)
Worksheet
Belief-O-Meter (CYP)
Worksheet
Catching Your Thoughts (CYP)
Worksheet
CBT Appraisal Model
Worksheet
CBT Thought Record Portrait
Worksheet
Challenging Your Negative Thinking (Archived)
Guide
Compassionate Thought Challenging Record
Worksheet
Court Trial Thought Challenging Record (Archived)
Worksheet
Decatastrophizing
Exercise
Demanding Standards – Living Well With Your Personal Rules
Guide
Dysfunctional Thought Record
Worksheet
Evaluating Unhelpful Automatic Thoughts
Guide
Fact Or Opinion
Exercise
Health Anxiety Thought Record
Worksheet
Hindsight Bias
Information Handout
Hotspot Record
Worksheet
Interoceptive Exposure
Exercise
Interpersonal Beliefs And Styles
Worksheet
Intrusive Thoughts Images And Impulses
Exercise
Modifying Rules And Assumptions
Worksheet
Nightmare Exposure And Rescripting
Exercise
Nightmare Rescripting (Audio)
Audio
Perspective-Taking
Exercise
Pie Charts
Exercise
Positive Belief Record
Worksheet
Prompts For Challenging Negative Thinking
Exercise
REBT Consequences Analysis Form
Worksheet
Schema Bias
Information Handout
Self Critical Thought Challenging Record
Worksheet
Simple Thought Challenging Record
Worksheet
Stimulus Discrimination
Exercise
Stimulus Discrimination (Audio)
Audio
Taking Panic Out Of The Body
Exercise
Testing Anxious And Panicky Predictions (Psychology Tools For Overcoming Panic)
Chapter
Theory A / Theory B
Worksheet
Theory A / Theory B (Edition 1)
Worksheet
Thought Distortion Monitoring Record
Worksheet
Thought Record – Courtroom Trial
Worksheet
Thought Record (Considered Response)
Worksheet
Thought Record (Evidence For And Against)
Worksheet
Thoughts In CBT (Psychology Tools For Living Well)
Chapter
Unhelpful Thinking Styles
Information Handout
Vertical Arrow Down Arrow Vertical Descent
Exercise
Vicious Flower Formulation
Exercise
What If
Exercise
Working With Anxious Thoughts And Predictions (Psychology Tools For Overcoming Panic)
Chapter
Worry Thought Record
Worksheet
Types
- Case formulation – Case conceptualization can promote cognitive restructuring by helping clients to think about their difficulties from a different perspective. For example, some clients find the process of formulation can instill hope by making potential solutions apparent
- Psychoeducation – Learning more about a condition, disorder, or process almost by definition promotes cognitive restructuring. For example, learning about typical automatic reactions in trauma (e.g.freezing, soiling) can reduce a sense of self-blame and associated shame
- Traditional CBT thought records – Thought records help clients to identify Negative Automatic Thoughts, then to identify any unhelpful thinking styles, then to generate alternative (cognitively restructured) ways of thinking
- Behavioral experiments – Behavioral experiements can help clients to experimentally test the validity of beliefs which may or may not be unhelpful. They can promote cognitive restructuring by helping clients to uncover evidence which contradicts previously held beliefs
- Socratic questioning – Guided discovery is used to explore a client’s beliefs. This can promote cognitive restructuring by making explicit belief structures, rules, and assumptions of which a client may have been unaware
- Diaries – Diaries or other forms of evidence gathering can generate concrete evidence. This can promote cognitive restructuring by undermine unhelpful assumptions
Intervention
- Definition of cognitive restructuring download
- Schema change processes in cognitive therapy download archived copy
- Modification of core beliefs in cognitive therapy (book chapter) download archived copy
- Identifying and challenging thinking errors download archived copy
- Identifying and modifying negative automatic thoughts download archived copy
- Identifying and working with dysfunctional assumptions download archived copy
Recommended Reading
- Bouchard, S., Gauthier, J., Laberge, B., French, D., Pelletier, M. H., & Godbout, C. (1996). Exposure versus cognitive restructuring in the treatment of panic disorder with agoraphobia. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 34(3), 213-224. download archived copy
- Bryant, R. A., Moulds, M. L., Guthrie, R. M., Dang, S. T., & Nixon, R. D. (2003). Imaginal exposure alone and imaginal exposure with cognitive restructuring in treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder. Journal of consulting and clinical psychology, 71(4), 706. download archive.org
What Is Cognitive Restructuring?
Techniques for Cognitive Restructuring
- Behavioral experiments (including hypothesis testing and surveys) have been a fundamental CBT technique since the publication of the first treatment manual: “a powerful method with which to investigate the validity of a specific assumption consists of designing an experiment or task to test the assumption empirically” (Beck et al., 1979). Bennett-Levy et al. (2004) define behavioral experiments as:
“planned experiential activities, based on experimentation or observation, which are undertaken by patients in or between cognitive therapy sessions … their primary purpose is to obtain new information which may help to: test the validity of the patients’ existing beliefs …; construct and/or test new, more adaptive beliefs; contribute to the development and verification of the cognitive formulation.”
- Examining and reality-testing automatic thoughts and images, popularly known as ‘thought challenging’ or ‘disputing thoughts’ is a technique by which patients are encouraged to examine the accuracy of and validity of their negative automatic thoughts and images.
- Psychoeducation in therapy refers to information-giving. Many patients experience psychological distress because they lack critical information. Information can be given directly in the form of handouts or reading, or indirectly in the form of information-gathering exercises.
- Socratic dialogue is “a method of guided discovery in which the therapist asks a series of carefully sequenced questions to help define problems, assist in the identification of thoughts and beliefs, examine the meaning of events, or assess the ramifications of particular thoughts or behaviors” (Beck & Dozois, 2011). The Socratic method can help patients to reflect upon how they think and the assumptions they make, and can promote cognitive change.
References
- Beck, A. T., & Dozois, D. J. (2011). Cognitive therapy: Current status and future directions. Annual Review of Medicine, 62, 397–409.
- Beck, A. T., Rush, A. J., Shaw, B. F., & Emery, G. (1979). Cognitive therapy of depression. New York: Guilford Press.
- Bennett-Levy, J., Butler, G., Fennell, M., Hackmann, A., Mueller, M., & Westbrook, D. (2004). Oxford guide to behaviouralexperiments in cognitive therapy. New York: Oxford University Press.
- Leahy, R. L., & Rego, S. A. (2012). Cognitive restructuring. In W. T. O’Donohue & J. E. Fisher (Eds.), Cognitive behavior therapy: Core principles for practice(pp. 113–158). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.