cognitive behavioral therapy
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is a therapeutic approach that aims to change people’s behaviors by helping them change their automatic thoughts.
[Video] What is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (10:19 minutes)
Cognitive Distortions
In CBT, clients are taught to identify their automatic thoughts and assess whether they are helpful and supported by evidence. Many automatic thoughts that people experience are cognitive distortions. This page summarizes some of these common thinking traps. Identifying cognitive distortions allows clients to begin to challenge their unhelpful thoughts.
Thought Records
CBT clinicians often ask their clients to use thought records to track unhelpful thoughts, as well as the situations, emotions, and behaviors that are associated with them. These records help therapists gain a better understanding of their clients’ challenges outside of session, and allow clients to be active participants in their therapy. This page shows a typical thought record.
Cognitive Restructuring: Socratic Questions
Cognitive restructuring refers to the process of challenging, and changing, unhelpful thoughts. Socratic questioning is one technique to encourage this process. Therapists use Socratic questioning verbally by asking probing questions about their clients' thoughts. As clients improve their awareness of thoughts, they can begin to use socratic questioning on their own. This page provides examples of socratic questions.