IB Psychology Topic Cognitive Explanations Revision Notes (SL/HL)

IB Psychology Topic Cognitive Explanations Revision Notes (SL/HL) | RevisionDojo

Written by official IB examiners

Your thinking patterns shape your emotional health: distorted thoughts drive psychological distress, but changing them reverses the cycle.

Cognitive explanations propose that psychological disorders arise from irrational, distorted, or negative thoughts rather than purely biological causes.
They emphasize that thoughts, feelings, and behavior are interconnected: changing thinking patterns can alleviate psychological suffering.
Beck's cognitive triad and Ellis's ABC model are two prominent cognitive frameworks used to explain and treat depression and anxiety.

Beck's cognitive triad: three layers of negative thinking that maintain depression

Aaron Beck identified a
cognitive triad: three interconnected negative thought patterns that create and sustain depression.
1. Negative view of self: the person views themselves as worthless, inadequate, or deeply flawed.
2. Negative view of the world: the person perceives their environment as hostile, uncaring, or overwhelming.
3. Negative view of the future: the person expects hopelessness and believes suffering will continue indefinitely.
These three elements form a self-perpetuating cycle: negative thoughts trigger sad emotions, which strengthen belief in the negative thoughts.

Example

"I'm a failure" (self), "nobody likes me" (world), "I'll always be alone" (future).
Sad feelings confirm these beliefs, intensifying the cycle.

Ellis's ABC model: how beliefs turn events into emotional crises

Albert Ellis developed the
ABC model to show that events don't directly cause emotions: beliefs about events do.

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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit.
Sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua.
Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris.
Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum.

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Your thinking patterns shape your emotional health: distorted thoughts drive psychological distress, but changing them reverses the cycle.

Cognitive explanations propose that psychological disorders arise from irrational, distorted, or negative thoughts rather than purely biological causes.
They emphasize that thoughts, feelings, and behavior are interconnected: changing thinking patterns can alleviate psychological suffering.
Beck's cognitive triad and Ellis's ABC model are two prominent cognitive frameworks used to explain and treat depression and anxiety.

Beck's cognitive triad: three layers of negative thinking that maintain depression

Aaron Beck identified a
cognitive triad: three interconnected negative thought patterns that create and sustain depression.
1. Negative view of self: the person views themselves as worthless, inadequate, or deeply flawed.
2. Negative view of the world: the person perceives their environment as hostile, uncaring, or overwhelming.
3. Negative view of the future: the person expects hopelessness and believes suffering will continue indefinitely.
These three elements form a self-perpetuating cycle: negative thoughts trigger sad emotions, which strengthen belief in the negative thoughts.

Example

"I'm a failure" (self), "nobody likes me" (world), "I'll always be alone" (future).
Sad feelings confirm these beliefs, intensifying the cycle.

Ellis's ABC model: how beliefs turn events into emotional crises

Albert Ellis developed the
ABC model to show that events don't directly cause emotions: beliefs about events do.

Definition

Paywall

(on a website) an arrangement whereby access is restricted to users who have paid to subscribe to the site.

anim nostrud sit dolore minim proident quis fugiat velit et eiusmod nulla quis nulla mollit dolor sunt culpa aliqua

Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit

Note

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam quis nostrud exercitation.

Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident

Tip

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit.
Sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua.
Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris.
Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum.

Biological Approach4 subtopics

Cognitive Approach4 subtopics

Sociocultural Approach4 subtopics

Option 1: Abnormal Psychology3 subtopics

Option 2: Developmental Psychology3 subtopics

Option 3: Health Psychology3 subtopics

Option 4: Human Relationships3 subtopics

IB Psychology Cognitive Explanations Notes

Biological Approach4 subtopics

Cognitive Approach4 subtopics

Sociocultural Approach4 subtopics

Option 1: Abnormal Psychology3 subtopics

Option 2: Developmental Psychology3 subtopics

Option 3: Health Psychology3 subtopics

Option 4: Human Relationships3 subtopics

Your thinking patterns shape your emotional health: distorted thoughts drive psychological distress, but changing them reverses the cycle.

Beck's cognitive triad: three layers of negative thinking that maintain depression

Ellis's ABC model: how beliefs turn events into emotional crises

anim nostrud sit dolore minim proident quis fugiat velit et eiusmod nulla quis nulla mollit dolor sunt culpa aliqua

Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit

Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident

Unlock the rest of this chapter with a free account

Your thinking patterns shape your emotional health: distorted thoughts drive psychological distress, but changing them reverses the cycle.

Beck's cognitive triad: three layers of negative thinking that maintain depression

Ellis's ABC model: how beliefs turn events into emotional crises

anim nostrud sit dolore minim proident quis fugiat velit et eiusmod nulla quis nulla mollit dolor sunt culpa aliqua

Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit

Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident

Unlock the rest of this chapter with a free account