Behavioral Activation Activity Diary

The Behavioral Activation Activity Diary is a worksheet designed to support activity monitoring.

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Professional version

Offers theory, guidance, and prompts for mental health professionals. Downloads are in Fillable PDF format where appropriate.

Client version

Includes client-friendly guidance. Downloads are in Fillable PDF format where appropriate.

Editable version (PPT)

An editable Microsoft PowerPoint version of the resource.

Overview

Behavioral activation (BA) is an effective treatment for depression. Different behavioral activation protocols include a variety of treatment components, but all contain steps of activity monitoring and activity planning / scheduling. The Behavioral Activation Activity Diary is a worksheet designed for activity monitoring. This diary is in a 7-day format and includes sections for: recording activity in the morning / afternoon / evening; prompts to help clients to record the most helpful kinds of information; and a mood rating scale.

Why Use This Resource?

Behavioral Activation (BA) is a well-supported treatment for depression, focusing on increasing activity levels to break cycles of inactivity and low mood.

Provides detailed insights into clients' current activity levels.
Promotes reflection on the connections between activity and mood.
Assists in developing ideas about activities that might improve mood.

Key Benefits

Clarity

Offers a clear structure for monitoring and analyzing daily activities.

Insight

Helps identify activities that have a positive or negative impact on mood.

Effective

Based on proven behavioral activiation strategies to treat depression.

Who is this for?

Depression and Low Mood

Ideal for mental health professionals supporting clients experiencing depression and low mood.

Integrating it into your practice

Record

Clients track activities and mood levels.

Review

Discuss completed diaries to identify patterns and generate insights.

Plan

Collaboratively schedule meaningful activities.

Reflect

Discuss mood changes in relation to activities.

Theoretical Background & Therapist Guidance

Learning theories suggest that depression stems from losing positive reinforcement and falling into inactivity, leading to a cycle of low mood and decreased motivation. A behavioral approach called behavioral activation (BA) aims to break this cycle by increasing activity levels and engagement in meaningful tasks. Evidence shows BA is an effective treatment for depression and low mood (Ekers et al., 2014; Jacobson et al., 1996).

BA protocols typically involve activity monitoring and planning (Kanter et al., 2010). Monitoring allows therapists and clients to assess baseline activity levels, focus on current engagement, and explore the relationship between activity and mood. The Behavioral Activation Activity Diary is a 7-day worksheet designed for this purpose, including sections for recording activities and mood ratings.

What's inside

An introduction to behavioral activation and activity monitoring.
Therapist guidance for using the resource with clients.
Key references and suggestions for further reading.

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FAQs

The diary encourages clients to track activities and corresponding mood levels, providing a basis to identify and increase engagement in rewarding activities.

It uniquely combines activity monitoring with mood ratings over a structured time frame, which helps develop discussion points for therapeutic intervention.

How This Resource Improves Clinical Outcomes

This activity diary enhances clinical outcomes by:

Supporting activity and mood monitoring.
Identifying mood-enhancing activities.
Facilitating actionable therapeutic discussions.

Clinicians Who Use This Resource Also Use

Using Behavioral Activation To Overcome Depression

References And Further Reading

Ekers, D., Webster, L., Van Straten, A., Cuijpers, P., Richards, D., & Gilbody, S. (2014). Behavioural activation for depression; an update of meta-analysis of effectiveness and sub group analysis. PloS one, 9 (6).
Jacobson, N. S., Dobson, K. S., Truax, P. A., Addis, M. E., Koerner, K., Gollan, J. K., ... & Prince, S. E. (1996). A component analysis of cognitive-behavioral treatment for depression. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 64 (2), 295.
Kanter, J. W., Manos, R. C., Bowe, W. M., Baruch, D. E., Busch, A. M., & Rusch, L. C. (2010). What is behavioral activation? : A review of the empirical literature. Clinical Psychology Review, 30 (6), 608-620.
Lejuez, C. W., Hopko, D. R., & Hopko, S. D. (2001). A brief behavioral activation treatment for depression: Treatment manual. Behavior Modification, 25, 255-286.