Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Overview

Gardner's Theory of Multiple Intelligences

• Howard Gardner proposed intelligence isn't a singular ability, but rather consists of multiple types
• Each type represents a distinct way of processing information

Types of Multiple Intelligences

• Linguistic: Word-based skills (e.g., writers, poets)
• Logical-Mathematical: Logical reasoning and problem-solving (e.g., scientists, mathematicians)
• Musical: Sensitivity to sound patterns and music (e.g., composers, musicians)
• Bodily-Kinesthetic: Control of body movements and coordination (e.g., athletes, dancers)
• Spatial: Visualizing and manipulating objects in space (e.g., architects, artists)
• Interpersonal: Understanding and interacting effectively with others (e.g., teachers, leaders)
• Intrapersonal: Self-awareness and understanding one's own emotions (e.g., philosophers, psychologists)
• Naturalistic: Recognizing patterns in nature (e.g., biologists, conservationists)

Sternberg's Triarchic Theory of Intelligence

• Robert Sternberg suggested intelligence has three main aspects
• Analytical Intelligence: Problem-solving and logical reasoning, measured by traditional IQ tests
• Creative Intelligence: Ability to generate new ideas and adapt to novel situations
• Practical Intelligence: Everyday skills and "street smarts" for handling real-world tasks

Emotional Intelligence (4 Components)

• Emotional intelligence is the ability to understand and manage emotions effectively
• Perceiving Emotions: Recognizing emotions in yourself and others
• Understanding Emotions: Knowing what causes emotions and how they evolve
• Managing Emotions: Regulating your own emotions and responding appropriately to others
• Using Emotions: Applying emotions to problem-solving and creative thinking

Motivation (4 Theories)

• Instinct Theory: Some behaviors are innate and crucial for survival (e.g., animals hunting)
• Drive-Reduction Theory: Focuses on responding to physiological needs (e.g., hunger, thirst) to maintain homeostasis (a balanced internal state).
• Incentive Theory: Positive or negative environmental stimuli motivate behaviors.
• Arousal Theory: Focuses on finding the right level of stimulation.

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

• Describes five levels of human needs, prioritizing some over others
• Often visualized as a pyramid, with basic needs at the base
• Physiological Needs: Basic needs like hunger and thirst
• Safety Needs: Need for safety and security
• Belongingness and Love Needs: Need to belong and be loved
• Esteem Needs: Need for self-esteem, recognition, and respect
• Self-Actualization Needs: Need to reach one's full potential
• Self-Transcendence Needs: Need to find meaning and identity beyond oneself

Emotion Theories

• James-Lange Theory: Body reaction precedes the emotional experience (e.g., racing heart leads to fear).
• Cannon-Bard Theory: Body reaction and emotional experience occur simultaneously (e.g., heart racing and feeling fear simultaneously).
• Schachter-Singer Two-Factor Theory: Emotions are a combination of physical arousal and cognitive interpretation (e.g., heart racing plus identifying the cause as fear, creating fear).

Stress

• Stress: The process of perceiving and responding to certain life events (stressors)
• Cognitive Appraisals: Evaluation of events as challenges or threats impacting stress response
• Fight-or-Flight Response: Physiological reaction to stress involving the sympathetic nervous system
• General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS): Three stages (alarm, resistance, exhaustion) in response to prolonged stress.
• Stress-Health Connection: Stress negatively affects the immune system
• Personal Control: Belief in controlling your life plays a role in coping with stress
• Internal locus of control = belief actions shape life
• External locus of control = belief outside factors shape your life.

Learned Helplessness

• Feeling of lack of control over one's life, leading to feelings of helplessness

Coping Strategies

• Methods to reduce stress, employing emotional, cognitive, or behavioral approaches

Social Psychology

• The scientific study of how people think about, influence, and relate to one another

Attitudes

• Feelings affecting responses to situations, often shaped by beliefs.

Persuasion Techniques

• Central Route: Fact-based arguments
• Peripheral Route: Appealing to surface aspects (e.g., appearance, likeability).

Group Effects

• Social Facilitation: Enhanced performance with others in simple tasks.
• Social Loafing: Reduced effort in group settings.
• Deindividuation: Individuality and self-control decline in groups.
• Group Polarization: Stronger opinions in like-minded groups.
• Groupthink: Prioritizing group agreement over critical decision-making

Personality

• Psychodynamic Theory: Emphasizes unconscious thoughts, desires, and conflicts shaping behavior
• Psychoanalysis: Therapy method to uncover unconscious conflicts
• Free Association: Therapy technique where patients freely express thoughts and feelings
• Structural Model of Personality (Id, Ego, Superego):
  • Id: Instinctive desires (hunger, sex, aggression) seeking immediate pleasure
  • Ego: Realistic mediator between id and superego
  • Superego: Moral values, rules, and ideals
• Psychosexual Stages (Oral, Anal, Phallic, Latency, Genital): Stages of development focused on specific erogenous zones.
• Defense Mechanisms: Unconscious strategies to cope with anxiety (e.g., repression, projection)
• Humanistic Perspective: Emphasizes personal growth and fulfillment (Rogers's unconditional positive regard)
• Trait Perspective: Focuses on stable personality characteristics (e.g., Big Five factors)
• Person-Situation Controversy: Debate regarding the relative importance of personality traits versus situational influences on behavior.
• Social-Cognitive Perspective: Explains behavior through interactions and reciprocal determinism (internal factors, environment, and behavior influence each other).

Disorders

• Psychological Disorder: Clinically significant disturbance in cognition, emotion, or behavior.
• Medical Model: Views psychological disorders as illnesses requiring diagnosis and treatment
• Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5): Used to classify and diagnose mental disorders.
• Dimensional vs. Categorical: Dimensional approach uses a scale, categorical classifies in categories.
• Components of all diagnostic criteria: Symptoms, duration, impairment
• Anxiety Disorders: Specific phobias, social anxiety, panic disorder, and generalized anxiety disorder (GAD).
• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: Characterized by obsessions (thoughts) and compulsions (behaviors).
• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): Emotional disturbance after traumatic experience.
• Mood Disorders: Major depressive disorder (MDD), persistent depressive disorder (PDD), bipolar disorders (mania, depression)
• Schizophrenia: Psychological disorder marked by hallucinations, delusions, disorganized thoughts.
• Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD): Characterized by attention problems and/or hyperactivity

Treatments

• Psychotherapy: Treatment using psychological techniques (e.g., psychodynamic, humanistic, behavior).
• Biomedical Therapy: Treatments using medical approaches (e.g., medication, procedures).
• Eclectic Approach: Combining different therapeutic strategies.
• Insight Therapies: Techniques to increase self-awareness.
• Psychodynamic Therapy: Uncovering unconscious conflicts.
• Gestalt Approach: Personal responsibility, present moment awareness
• Humanistic/Person-Centered Therapy: Unconditional positive regard, empathy.
• Behavior Therapy: Learning to replace maladaptive behaviors with healthier ones. (classical, operant conditioning
• Counterconditioning: Creating new conditioned responses to stimuli
• Exposure Therapy: Gradual exposure to feared stimuli
• Systematic Desensitization Combining exposure with relaxation techniques.
• Aversion Therapy: Associating unwanted behaviors with unpleasant stimuli
• Operant Conditioning: Using rewards and punishments to shape behavior.
• Group Therapy: Shared support and skills building in a group setting
• Family Therapy: Enhancing family dynamics and communication.
• Evidence-Based Practice (EBP): Using research to inform clinical practice

Test your knowledge on key concepts related to cognitive-behavioral therapies (CBT). This quiz covers the primary purposes of exposure therapies, the benefits of therapy, and core components of evidence-based practice. Challenge yourself and deepen your understanding of CBT!