Cognitive therapy is one of the most widely used approaches within counseling and psychotherapy today. As such, there is a wealth of literature to offer the newcomer, which can sometimes be overwhelming for those seeking an initial understanding of the approach. Cognitive Therapy in a Nutshell solves this problem by providing the key elements of cognitive therapy theory and practice in a very concise and accessible way.Cognitive therapy teaches clients that there is always more than one way of seeing events, and therefore that their viewpoint is largely a mater of choice. Helping clients to develop and maintain more helpful viewpoints in tackling their problems is the focus of the therapy. Cognitive Therapy in a Nutshell offers clear explanations of the fundamental models used to treat clients including the information-processing model, and the three cognitive levels examined during therapy – automatic thoughts, underlying assumptions/rules, and core beliefs (schemas). The authors also provide a valuable case study of a client with social phobia to demonstrate how cognitive therapy works in action.Cognitive Therapy in a Nutshell also explores the techniques involved Eliciting and examining negative automatic thoughts Uncovering and examining underlying assumptions, rules and core beliefs Maintaining gains from therapy This book will be invaluable to those coming to cognitive therapy for the first time, and who want to gain a full understanding of the basics of the approach.
I have been working in psychotherapy research for a while now and cognitive therapy is one of the core topics of it. Yet, I could not appreciate more such a clear, concise description of cognitive techniques, together with well-fitting examples, which allowed me to gain even a better, practical picture of these methods. A perfect book for any psychotherapist-to-be, just deciding about their school of thought, researcher, anyone who works with clients of psychotherapy, or for potential clients who are deciding whether to undergo therapy or which type to choose.
Interesting if you're into therapy. I'm not a huge fan of CBT in general but it made more sense than I'd assumed. Silly me. I believe it will be useful for me.