Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- Foreword
- 1 Cognitive therapy across the lifespan: conceptual horizons
- 2 Cognitive theory and therapy of depression
- 3 Cognitive theory and therapy of bipolar disorders
- 4 Regulation of emotion in generalized anxiety disorder
- 5 Cognitive theory and therapy of obsessions and compulsions
- 6 The cognitive model of panic
- 7 Treating obsessional problems using cognitive-behavioral therapy
- 8 Narcissistic personality disorder
- 9 Cognitive therapy and the self
- 10 Promoting cognitive change in posttraumatic stress disorder
- 11 Cognitive theory and therapy of social phobia
- 12 The cognitive model of bulimia nervosa
- 13 Cognitive therapy and schizophrenia
- 14 Cognitive-behavioral interventions for alcohol abuse and dependence
- 15 Cognitive approaches to understanding, preventing and treating child and adolescent depression
- 16 Cognitive-behavioral interventions in childhood anxiety disorders
- 17 Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder
- 18 Cognitive-behavioral interventions for children with conduct problems
- 19 Processes of change in cognitive therapy
- 20 Cognitive therapy in the twenty-first century: current status and future directions
- Index
2 - Cognitive theory and therapy of depression
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 July 2014
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- Foreword
- 1 Cognitive therapy across the lifespan: conceptual horizons
- 2 Cognitive theory and therapy of depression
- 3 Cognitive theory and therapy of bipolar disorders
- 4 Regulation of emotion in generalized anxiety disorder
- 5 Cognitive theory and therapy of obsessions and compulsions
- 6 The cognitive model of panic
- 7 Treating obsessional problems using cognitive-behavioral therapy
- 8 Narcissistic personality disorder
- 9 Cognitive therapy and the self
- 10 Promoting cognitive change in posttraumatic stress disorder
- 11 Cognitive theory and therapy of social phobia
- 12 The cognitive model of bulimia nervosa
- 13 Cognitive therapy and schizophrenia
- 14 Cognitive-behavioral interventions for alcohol abuse and dependence
- 15 Cognitive approaches to understanding, preventing and treating child and adolescent depression
- 16 Cognitive-behavioral interventions in childhood anxiety disorders
- 17 Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder
- 18 Cognitive-behavioral interventions for children with conduct problems
- 19 Processes of change in cognitive therapy
- 20 Cognitive therapy in the twenty-first century: current status and future directions
- Index
Summary
Cognitive theory of depression
Cognitive theory of depression (Beck, 1963) holds a prominent place in the history of clinical psychology as one of the first systematic statements of assumptions that have shaped the cognitive revolution in psychopathology (Clark and Steer, 1996). These tenets have since informed cognitive conceptualizations of many other disorders, as evidenced by the diversity of models described in this volume. Most fundamentally, all cognitive theories of psychopathology assert that people notice, recall, and interpret their experiences idiosyncratically – in accordance with their personal learning histories – and that these cognitive styles play a role in the genesis of specific psychological disorders.
There are numerous cognitive theories of depression (Ellis, 1987; Abramson et al., 1989), and a detailed description and review of each of these models and their implications for treating depression would exceed the scope of this chapter. We have elected to focus specifically on Beck's theory because more than other cognitive models it has both generated substantial empirical research on the psychopathology of depression and led to the development of an empirically supported treatment for depression (Clark et al., 1999).
In cognitive theory of depression, Beck proposed that rigidly negativistic beliefs regarding personal inadequacy or loss (e.g., “I am all alone in the world”) in combination with overvaluation of certain outcomes (e.g., “Life is not worth living if I am all alone”) are vulnerability factors for the onset and maintenance of depression.
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- Information
- Cognitive Therapy across the LifespanEvidence and Practice, pp. 12 - 39Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2003
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