Cognitive Distortions
What is a Cognitive Distortion?
a thought, that is not based on fact, that causes a person to perceive reality inaccurately due to being exaggerated or irrational
What is Minimization and Magnification?
You blow things way out of proportion, or you shrink their importance appropriately.
“I should be exercising more," create expectations that are not likely to be met. The pressure created from the “should” statements makes it difficult to meet those expectations and when the failure occurs there is guilt and frustration which makes you less likely to make another attempt.
Should Statements Example
You attend a party but all your friends are busy engaging with other people. You feel like they do not have any interest in being your friend and engaging in conversation with you. This makes you think you don’t belong or are unfairly excluded.
Personalization Example
What are the two simplest methods to challenge cognitive distortions?
Identify the Distortion: Write them down.
Examine the Evidence: Instead of assuming that your thought is true, look at the facts.
What is Mental Filtering?
You focus on the negative and ignore the positives.
What does one do when they disqualify the positive?
When you reject positive comments/affirmations about yourself because you believe that others are lying (for whatever motive)
“If I am not successful at everything I do, I am a complete failure”.
Polarized Thinking
Placing blame for relationship issues on your partner instead of sharing the responsibility for actions taken by both partners. You assume the victim mentality and think everything they do is to hurt you.
Blaming Example
What is the double standard method?
Instead of putting yourself down, talk to yourself with compassionate.
What is Labeling?
assigning judgment to yourself or others and identifying with it
ex. I'm stupid, dumb, loser, etc.
What is Overgeneralization?
Overgeneralization thinking occurs when a person focuses on a single event that occurred and makes a conclusion based on this single piece of negative evidence.
Disqualifying the Positive Example
A student gets a good grade on an assignment, but the student overlooks it and tries to explain their good grade as simply luck or fluke instead of a result of their hard work.
Disqualifying the Positive Example
A person cheats and lies to their partner, when they leave they feel that it is all the other person's fault for leaving. They think that they had no control over what happened but they fail to see how their actions affected what happened to them.
External Control Fallacy Example
What is the name of this method to challenging a cognitive distortion?
Do a test to check the facts of your thought. For example, if, during the episode of panic, you become terrified that you are about to die of a heart attack, you could jog or run up and down several flights of stairs. This will prove that your heart is healthy and strong.
The Experimental Technique
What is Magical Thinking?
When people believe their actions, thoughts, or words influence the world around them
Ex. if you step on a crack you'll break your mothers' back, knock on wood, finding a heads up penny is good luck
What is Emotional Reasoning?
Whatever emotion a person is feeling during this thought distortion must be true in their mind. One’s emotion is accepted as fact because all logical reasoning is blocked out. They are incorrectly assuming that the negative feeling brought out by their emotions is the only truth.
You might feel lonely because at this moment you are by yourself and your friends are off doing something fun. However, from this feeling, you assume no one loves you or wants to be around you.
Emotional Reasoning Example
A person is meeting a date for lunch. However, their date is running late and the person starts assuming the worst. Their worries escalate quickly and the thoughts become exaggerated when there could be many reasonable explanations why a person is late.
Magnification Example
How do you Think in Shades of Grey?
Instead of thinking of things in black or white, evaluate things on a range of 1 to 100.
What is the name of a cognitive distortion where you think of what you should have or shouldn't have done?
What are the effects of this type of distortion?
Should Statements (Should've, could've, would've)
The statements are enforced on themselves or others. These rules create a lot of pressure, imposing a set of expectations that is not likely to be met.
What Cognitive Distortion do you struggle with? What are some of the thoughts you have?
Open Ended
A student receives a bad grade on one exam, based on this they think they are stupid and a failure and believe that in all future exams they will get a bad grade as well.
Overgeneralization Example
Two people at school have a disagreement about how the project should be executed. One person believes it should be done their way because that’s how it’s always been done. But the other argue based on facts that there are procedures that need to be followed. The person completely ignores these facts and argues their opinion to any extent.
Always Being Right Example
What is the name of this method to challenging a cognitive distortion?
Ask people questions to find out if your thoughts and attitudes are realistic.
The Survey Method
What is it called when you have no middle ground?
This is a “All-or-Nothing," or “Black and White” thinking pattern
What cognitive distortion is this and how could you reframe this thought?
Its all my families fault for the relationship issues we have experienced. Why am I always treated this way? If only they put more effort into our relationship.
Personalization and Blame
A relationship takes two people to make it work. I am equally responsible for any issues we may have. I should apologize for my mistakes and try to move forward as best we can.
When you are spending time with a friend, but they seem distracted or uninterested. You automatically jump to the conclusion that it has something to do with you. There could be many reasons, unrelated to you, why they are feeling that way.
Mind Reading Example
An athlete wins an award but does not acknowledge their accomplishment. They minimize the importance of the award because they might feel others already have the same award.
Minimization Example
How can Re-attribution help you challenge a cognitive distortion?
Focus on solving the problem instead of using up all your energy blaming yourself and feeling guilty.
What are the 2 methods of Jumping to Conclusions, making assumptions that are not based on any actual fact?
Mind Reading - you assume that people are reacting negatively to you when there’s no definite evidence for this
Fortune Telling - you predict things will turn out badly
What cognitive distortion is this and how could you reframe this thought?
I received a good mark on my assignment, but it’s probably a mistake. I’m pretty sure it was just luck or fluke, I don’t normally get good grades.
I received a good mark on my assignment. I am grateful to receive this grade and am proud of what I accomplished.
An employee who receives a performance review at work gets a good review but focuses on one negative comment their manager made about them during the review.
Negative Mental Filtering Example
You ask a colleague for help with a task you are working on. Your colleague quickly dismisses your attention and does not help you. Based on this you assume they are a selfish jerk.
Labeling Example
What is The Semantic Method?
Be specific and change the way you word things. This method is helpful for “should statements”. Instead of telling yourself “I shouldn’t have made that mistake”, you can say “It would be better is I hadn’t made that mistake”.
What is Personalization and Blame?
You blame yourself for something you weren’t entirely responsible for, or you blame other people and overlook ways that your own attitudes and behavior might contribute to a problem
What cognitive distortion is this and how could you reframe this thought?
I visit a friend, but her expression seems negative towards me. She doesn’t want to see me and goes into her bedroom. She claimed she was sick but I feel like she is avoiding me.
She could really be sick and just wants to rest. There are many reasons why she wouldn’t want to see me, such as being self-conscious about her appearance or even worried she might be contagious.
You have a date with a wonderful person, but you predict that the date will go wrong. You start making assumptions about how the date will go before it even has occurred. The predictions are not based on any actual evidence.
Fortune Telling Example
A person might pressure their partner to change a few of their manners. They believe their partner is perfect in every other way except those few minor things and expects those changes will make them even happier.
Fallacy of Change Example
Why should you challenge your cognitive distortions?
To change the way you think and feel to live a happier and healthier life