Psychotherapy and Anxiety Portfolio

Vocabulary-style flashcards covering the fundamentals of psychotherapy, types of therapy, scientific evaluation methods, anxiety disorders, and common cognitive distortions as outlined by Dr. Farhad Dastur.

Psychotherapy

Also known as talk therapy, a collaborative partnership between a trained mental health professional and a client aimed at improving emotional well-being and mental health.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

A therapeutic approach that focuses on changing unhelpful thought patterns and behaviors by addressing the present through techniques like thought tracking and cognitive restructuring.

Psychodynamic Therapy

A therapy based on Freud’s theories that explores unconscious patterns rooted in early experiences and focuses on the past.

Humanistic Therapy

A therapy focused on self-awareness, self-acceptance, and personal growth, utilizing techniques such as empathic listening and unconditional positive regard.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)

A treatment designed for managing intense emotions and emotion dysregulation, commonly used for borderline personality disorder.

EMDR

Stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing; a therapy for processing trauma that involves recalling memories while engaging in bilateral stimulation like eye movements.

Randomized Control Trial (RCT)

A study where participants are randomly assigned to different groups to test a treatment’s effect, intended to reduce bias and ensure evidence-based conclusions.

Meta-analysis

A statistical technique that combines results from multiple studies on the same topic to identify overall trends and increase statistical power.

Umbrella Review

A systematic review that synthesizes findings from other systematic reviews and meta-analyses, often referred to as a review of reviews.

Effect Size

A quantitative estimate of the magnitude or strength of a relationship or difference between variables; in psychotherapy research, small is $0.2$, medium is $0.5$, and large is $0.8$.

States

Temporary and unstable psychological conditions resulting from specific situations, such as being in a state of happiness during a birthday.

Traits

Stable and enduring psychological conditions resulting from personality that exert a consistent influence even as situations change.

Anxiety

A negative mood state involving unease, apprehension about the future, and physical symptoms like sweating or rapid heartbeat.

Anxiety Disorder

A condition where anxiety lasts for a long duration and reaches an intensity or frequency that interferes with a person's well-being.

Obsessions

Intrusive, unwanted thoughts, images, or impulses that increase anxiety.

Compulsions

Repetitive behaviors or mental acts performed to decrease the anxiety caused by obsessions.

12-Month Prevalence

The proportion of a population, expressed as a percentage, that has a condition at some time during the past $12$ months.

Psychological Disorder

An ongoing dysfunctional pattern of thought, emotion, and behavior that causes significant distress and is considered abnormal within a culture.

Stigma

Negative stereotypes associated with mental illness.

Discrimination

The negative behavior that results from stereotypes and stigma toward individuals with mental illness.

Cognitive Distortions

Exaggerated or irrational thought patterns, identified by Aaron Beck, that often lead to negative emotional states and psychopathology.

The Cognitive Triad

Beck's model of depression consisting of negative views about the self, the world/environment, and the future.

Automatic Thoughts

Surface-level, reflexive cognitions that appear as images or words and are based on the core beliefs people hold about themselves.

All-or-Nothing Thinking

A distortion where one sees things in black-or-white categories; if a situation is not perfect, it is viewed as a total failure.

Over Generalization

A cognitive distortion where a single negative event is used to create a general rule, often involving words like always or never.

Mental Filtering

Selectively choosing to focus on one negative detail while ignoring the rest of a situation.

Discounting the Positive

The rejection of positive experiences by insisting they do not count, which contributes to feelings of inadequacy.

Emotional Reasoning

Assuming that negative emotions accurately reflect reality, effectively confusing subjective fear with objective risk.

Personalization

Taking the blame for events and situations that go wrong even when one is not responsible for them.

Should Statements

Directing expectations against oneself or others that lead to guilt, anger, and frustration when things do not go as hoped.

Labelling

Taking one single characteristic of a person and applying it to the entire person, often mirroring internal belief systems.