4. AQA A-Level Psychology Key Content

what is depression

a mood disorder which is characterised as having a low mood and there are multiple variations

what are some behavioural characteristics of depression

shift in activity levels - reduced energy making people perhaps withdraw from work

disruption to work - sleep more or less than usual

disruption to eating - appetite may increase or decrease

what are some cognitive characteristics of depression

negative thoughts - negative self concept, guilt, feeling helpless

biased thinking - focusing on negative aspects

poor concentration - unable to stick with a task

what are some emotional characteristics of depression

low mood - prolonged feelings of sadness, feeling empty

anger - directed to self or to others

what is the cognitive approach to explaining depression

the result of faulty, biased and maladaptive thinking patterns

why did this approach come about

computers were developed an provided models for how human brains may work

what are schemas

engraved systems of knowledge that we use to understand the world and may become negative due to trauma and negative events in early life

when are these schemas triggered

when the person encounters a similar experience

what did beck think negative schemas lead to

errors in logic since these people tend to draw illogical conclusions when they evaluate themselves

what is another name for these errors

cognitive distortion

what is the negative triad

negative views of self, the world and the future

explain what ABC stands for in ellis’s ABC model

Activating events lead to certain Beliefs about the event and therefore there is an emotional response or action, which is the Consequence

what is the difference between people who experience these events and don’t have depression vs have depression

those who don’t have depression have rational beliefs and will lead to desirable emotions and those who have depression will have irrational beliefs and will lead to psychological disturbances and behaviour

the irrational beliefs trigger the depression

what did Ellis suggest irrational thoughts are due to “masturbatory thinking” and what are these

thinking that certain idea must be true in order to be happy

• I must be approved of/accepted or i am no good

• others may treat me good and in the way i expect

• life must be easy

strengths of the cognitive approach to explaining depression

suggests that the client is responsible for their own thoughts, allowing them to take control of their condition

the idea people have irrational thoughts is backed by research, Krantz and Hammen found depressed pts make more errors in logic when interpreting material

weaknesses of the cognitive approach to explaining depression

it is problematic for the cognitive effect to suggest that the client is responsible for their own thinking and therefore disorder - may discourage them

cognitive explanations are often critiqued for being correlational rather than showing cause and effect

what is cognitive behavioural therapy

encouraging patients to challenge negative thoughts about themselves

what does CBT start with

an assessment where the patient and therapist work together to clarify the patients problems and set therapy goals

what is Ellis’s REBT therapy

client and therapist work together to identify situations (activating event) and the irrational beliefs they trigger, then asked to disoute and find evidence their beliefs are true

what does DE stand for in Ellis’s extended ABCDE model

disoute and effect

strengths of the cognitive approach to treating depression

CBT has been shown to be effective at treating depression - March et al compared CBT and antidepressants. 81% of CBT and 81% of CBT group were significantly improved, with CBT and antidepressants there was a 86% improvement

unlike anti-depressants, CBT deals with the underlying CAUSE of depression

weaknesses of the cognitive approach to treating depression

not suitable for all people since it requires motivation and severely depressed patients may not attend

risk of focusing on only changing thought patterns and ignoring other environmental factors

CBT may be only as effective as the therapist