The cognitive approach to explaining depression - Beck's theory
- Created by: Rosiem2102
- Created on: 21-03-18 12:10
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- Beck's cognitive theory of Depression
- Faulty information processing
- E.g: focusing on the fact that another person won £10 million rather than you winning £1 million
- When depressed we look at the negatives rather than positives
- Tend to blow problems out of proportion and think in black and white terms
- Negative self-schemas
- A schema is a 'package' of ideas and information developed from experience
- Self-schema is a package of information we have about ourselves
- Act as a mental framework for interpretation of sensory information
- We use schemas to interpret the world, if we have a negative self-schema we interpret ourselves in a negative way
- The negative triad
- Person develops a dysfunctional view of themselves because of three types of automatic negative thinking
- a) Negative view of the world
- "The world is a cold hard place"
- Creates the impression that there is no hope anywhere
- b) Negative view of the future
- "There isn't much chance the economy will get better"
- Creates the impression that there is no hope anywhere
- c) Negative view of the self
- "I am a failure"
- Enhances any existing depressive feelings because they confirm the existing emotions of low self-esteem
- Aaron Beck (1967) suggested a cognitive approach to explaining why some people are more vulnerable to depression than others
- In particular, it is a person's cognitions that create this vulnerability
- Evaluation
- It has good supporting evidence
- Grazioli and Terry (2000) assessed 65 pregnant women for cognitive vulnerability and depression before and after birth
- Found that women judged to have high cognitive vulnerability were more likely to suffer with post-natal depression
- Clark and Beck (1999) reviewed research on the topic and concluded there was solid support for cognitive vulnerability factors
- Cognitions can be seen before depression, suggesting Beck may be right about cognition causing depression
- It has practical application in CBT
- Cognitive aspects can be identified and challenged
- Components of the negative triad
- Therapist can encourage patient to test whether they are true
- Translates well into successful therapy
- It doesn't explain all aspects of depression
- Some patients are angry
- Some suffer hallucinations and delusions
- Cotard syndrome (delusion that they are zombies)
- Beck cannot easily explain these aspects of depression
- It has good supporting evidence
- Faulty information processing
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