Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) Fun with Albert

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Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT)

• Fun with Albert Ellis

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REBT

• Ellis views thoughts as rational or irrational.
• How do you determine for yourself whether your
  beliefs are rational or irrational?

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CBT vs. REBT

• Both emphasize importance of cognitions in
  determining behavior
• Both work to change beliefs, thoughts, and
  expectations in order to change feelings and
  behaviors
• Both allow therapists to be directive and active
• Both are very structured approaches

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CBT vs. REBT

• Faulty thinking
• Information processing model
• Schemas
• Inductive approach
• Open approach, Socratic dialogue, collaborative
  empiricism
• Warm, trusting therapeutic relationship

• Irrational thinking
• A-B-Cs of behavior model
• Illogical beliefs
• Deductive approach
• Persuasive, confrontational, directive, logical
• No need for therapeutic relationship

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Major REBT Hypotheses

• Human beings have a biologically based tendency
  to create and subscribe to deeply held beliefs
  about themselves, other people, and the world
  around them.
• These beliefs can importantly influence emotions
  and behaviors (and other types of cognitions and
  cognitive processes).

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• Certain types of beliefs will contribute to
  self-enhancing, goal-promoting emotions and
  behaviors other sorts of beliefs will contribute
  to self-defeating emotions and behaviors.
• It is possible to identify and modify the sorts
  of beliefs that contribute to self-defeating
  emotions and behaviors.

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• Modifications of these beliefs can help an
  individual to be less vulnerable to emotional
  disturbances and dysfunctional behavior.
• Since these beliefs are often deeply rooted
  within an individuals personality, modifications
  of them can involve a significant amount of
  ongoing and consistent effort.

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View of Human Nature

• Neutral
• Potential for positive (rational) and negative
  (irrational) behavior
• Self-preserving and self-destructive
• Free will

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Theory of Personality

• Biological/Social/Psychological influences
• Simultaneous nature of thinking, feeling, and
  behaving
• Active creators of our world
• A-B-Cs of behavior

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ABC Model

• Aactivating event
• An individuals perceptions and inferences
  concerning the events and conditions that occur
• Bbelief
• Includes both rational and irrational beliefs
  that an individual brings to bear upon the
  activating event
• Cconsequences (emotional and behavioral)
• Outcomes that the individual experiences as a
  result of holding specific beliefs

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Problem Development

• Irrational Beliefs
• Learning
• We are active creators of our problems

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Rational Irrational Beliefs

• Rational functional beliefs that contribute to
  individuals welfare, satisfaction, and
  happiness.
• Irrational dysfunctional beliefs that
  contribute to significant episodes of emotional
  disturbance and problematic behavior
• Makes one more vulnerable to unwanted emotions
  and behaviors in the future.

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Demandingness

• Irrational beliefs embody absolutistic, rigid
  demands, and can be verbally expressed in the
  form of shoulds musts have tos and ought
  to bes
• ExampleI must have the love and approval of my
  significant other (must is absolute)
• I want the love and approval of my significant
  other, but I do not need this.

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Verifiability

• Irrational beliefs are almost always empirically
  inconsistent with reality.
• With the prior example It is not an utter
  necessity for adult human beings to be loved by
  those they consider significant they can
  survive and still be happy, even without such
  love.

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Logical Consistency

• Rational beliefs are usually logically
  consistent.
• ExampleIt is good to be successful at ones
  job therefore, I want to be successful at my
  job.
• As opposed to, It is good to be successful at
  ones job therefore I must be successful at my
  job.

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Mechanisms of Change

• Changing beliefs and thoughts
• Two paths
• Changing beliefs gt changes emotions and behaviors
• Changing behavior gt changes beliefs/thinking
• Accepting our limitations and flaws

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Disputing Irrational Beliefs

• Logical disputing
• Using logic
• Empirical disputing
• Using evidence or examples
• Pragmatic disputing
• Using practical consequences
• Structured disputing
• Using worksheets or books

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Other Techniques

• Identify irrational thinking
• Practicing new thoughts and behaviors
• Behavioral methods
• Homework
• Trying different behaviors

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Therapeutic Process

• Therapist
• Active Directive
• Teaching
• Logical Persuasive
• Goals
• Change irrational and illogical thoughts/beliefs
• Long term behavior change

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Ellis with Gloria

• What to listen and watch for
• Directiveness
• Persuasiveness
• Use of ABC Model
• Activity (comparison of time speaking)
• Glorias reaction