CHAPTER 7

COGNITIVE AND BEHAVIORAL

THEORIES
 HISTORY OF BEHAVIORISM

• BEHAVIORISM OFFERS AN EXPLANATION ABOUT THE LEARNING PROCESS AND

EXPLAINS WHY SOME BEHAVIORS INCREASE WHILE OTHERS DECREASE
• PAVLOV DISCUSSED CLASSICAL CONDITIONING DESCRIBING HOW A RESPONSE SUCH
AS SALIVATION IN DOGS CAN BE PAIRED WITH A STIMULUS SUCH AS A BELL; THE
INTRODUCTION OF THE STIMULUS CAN EVENTUALLY CAUSE THE RESPONSE
• SKINNER BUILT ON THIS WORK DISCUSSING OPERANT CONDITIONING, WHICH
FOCUSES LESS ON PAIRING AND MORE ON HOW THE CONSEQUENCES OF A BEHAVIOR
CAN ENCOURAGE OR DISCOURAGE A PARTICULAR BEHAVIOR
 HISTORY OF BEHAVIORISM, CONTINUED

• POSITIVE REINFORCEMENTS SUCH AS PRAISE INCREASE A BEHAVIOR

• PUNISHERS ARE CONSEQUENCES THAT DISCOURAGE BEHAVIOR SUCH AS
GAINING WEIGHT AFTER THE HOLIDAYS MIGHT CAUSE SOMEONE TO STOP
OVEREATING
• THE LACK OF A NEGATIVE EVENT SUCH AS YELLING CAN BE CONSIDERED A
NEGATIVE REINFORCER
• BANDURA DEVELOPED SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY, WHICH LOOKS AT HOW
IMITATION OR MODELING IMPACTS THE LEARNING PROCESS
 HISTORY OF COGNITIVE THEORY

• A CRITIQUE OF BEHAVIORISM IS THAT IT FAILED TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE ROLE

THAT THINKING PLAYS IN THE LEARNING PROCESS, AND COGNITIVE THEORISTS
ADDED THIS ELEMENT
• FOR EXAMPLE, ALBERT ELLIS DEVELOPED THE ABC FRAMEWORK TO DESCRIBE
HOW OUR PERCEPTION IMPACTS OUR RESPONSE
• A = INITIAL EVENT
• B = PERSON’S BELIEF OR PERCEPTION ABOUT THAT EVENT
• C = EMOTIONAL OR BEHAVIOR RESPONSE
HISTORY OF COGNITIVE THEORY, CONTINUED

• AARON BECK FOCUSED ON HOW CORE SCHEMA AND IRRATIONAL BELIEFS

DISTORT OUR PERCEPTION, LEADING TO EXAGGERATED RESPONSES SUCH AS
ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION
• COGNITIVE RESTRUCTURING IS AN INTERVENTION THAT SEEKS TO IDENTIFY AND
RECONSTRUCT IRRATIONAL BELIEFS
 COGNITIVE AND BEHAVIORAL THEORIES:
KEY CONCEPTS

• CLASSICAL CONDITIONING SUGGESTS THAT BEHAVIOR IS EXPLAINED BY

ANTECEDENTS, OR WHAT HAPPENS BEFORE A BEHAVIOR.
• OPERANT CONDITIONING SUGGESTS THAT BEHAVIOR IS EXPLAINED BY THE
RESULTING CONSEQUENCES OF THAT ACTION.
• REINFORCERS ARE CONSEQUENCES FOLLOWING A BEHAVIOR THAT INCREASE
THE LIKELIHOOD THE BEHAVIOR WILL OCCUR AGAIN.
• PUNISHERS ARE CONSEQUENCES FOLLOWING A BEHAVIOR THAT DECREASE THE
LIKELIHOOD THE BEHAVIOR WILL CONTINUE.
 COGNITIVE AND BEHAVIORAL THEORIES:
KEY CONCEPTS, CONTINUED

• COGNITION REFERS TO AUTOMATIC THOUGHTS AND CORE BELIEFS THAT

INFLUENCE EMOTION AND BEHAVIOR.
• ILLOGICAL THOUGHTS ARE THINKING ERRORS THAT ARE UNHELPFUL SUCH AS
ALL-OR-NOTHING THINKING, OVERGENERALIZATION, CATASTROPHIZING, OR A
SENSE OF WORTHLESSNESS.
• IMITATION INVOLVES THE PROCESS OF LEARNING THAT OCCURS WHEN
OBSERVING A MODEL.
 COGNITIVE BEHAVIORAL TREATMENT (CBT)

• CBT IS A COUNSELING TREATMENT PROGRAM THAT INTEGRATES COGNITIVE AND

BEHAVIORAL THEORIES.
• CBT IS GROUNDED IN TWO BASIC TENETS
• THOUGHTS INFLUENCE EMOTIONS AND BEHAVIOR
• BEHAVIOR INFLUENCES EMOTIONS AND THOUGHTS
• CBT SEEKS TO IDENTIFY AUTOMATIC THOUGHTS, TO DECONSTRUCT THESE
THOUGHTS THROUGH SOCRATIC QUESTIONS TO IDENTIFY FUNDAMENTAL CORE
SCHEMA, AND THEN TO CHALLENGE THE VALIDITY OF THE SCHEMA,
ULTIMATELY FOR THE PURPOSE OF RESTRUCTURING ONE’S THOUGHT PATTERNS
 SOCIAL WORK PRACTICE

• ENGAGEMENT INVOLVES DEVELOPING A PROFESSIONAL RELATIONSHIP WITH A

CLIENT. WHEN USING COGNITIVE OR BEHAVIORAL THEORIES, THE SOCIAL
WORKER TENDS TO DIRECT THE SESSIONS MORE THAN SOME OTHER
APPROACHES SUCH AS CLIENT-CENTERED THEORY.
• WHEN USING COGNITIVE AND BEHAVIORAL THEORIES, SOCIAL WORKERS ASSESS
THE DURATION, FREQUENCY, AND SEVERITY OF THE PRESENTING PROBLEMS.
THIS ASSESSMENT WOULD INVOLVE AN EXAMINATION OF THE BEHAVIORAL
PATTERNS AS WELL AS THINKING PATTERNS.
 SOCIAL WORK PRACTICE, CONTINUED

• COGNITIVE AND BEHAVIORAL THEORIES WOULD RECOMMEND SETTING GOALS

WITH SMART OBJECTIVES TO INCREASE ABILITY TO MEASURE AND MONITOR
GOAL ATTAINMENT. SMART OBJECTIVES ARE:
• SPECIFIC
• MEASURABLE
• ACTION-ORIENTED
• REALISTIC
• TIMELY
 SOCIAL WORK PRACTICE, CONTINUED

• INTERVENTION ACCORDING TO COGNITIVE BEHAVIORAL THEORIES WOULD

SEEK TO ADAPT THINKING AND BEHAVIOR PATTERNS THAT ARE LINKED TO THE
PROBLEM. EXAMPLES OF INTERVENTIONS INCLUDE:
• BEHAVIOR ACTIVATION
• REINFORCEMENT SCHEDULING
• DESENSITIZATION
• COGNITIVE RESTRUCTURING
• PSYCHOEDUCATION
 SOCIAL WORK PRACTICE, CONTINUED

• COGNITIVE AND BEHAVIORAL THEORIES LEND THEMSELVES WELL TO

EVALUATION BECAUSE THEY COLLECT INFORMATION ABOUT FREQUENCY,
DURATION, AND SEVERITY OF THE PROBLEM THAT CAN BE TRACKED OVER TIME.
• THE USE OF STANDARDIZED TOOLS FOR EVALUATION IS COMMON WHEN USING
COGNITIVE OR BEHAVIORAL THEORIES.
 CASE EXAMPLE DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

• 1. HAMAD FINDS THAT ONE OF THE CARETAKERS IN HIS GROUP HAS HAD A NEGATIVE
EXPERIENCE IN SIMILAR GROUPS. THE GRANDMOTHER DISPLAYS THIS NEGATIVITY
ONTO HAMAD. HOW DOES HAMAD USE COGNITIVE RESTRUCTURING TO HELP THIS
GRANDMOTHER REFRAME HER NEGATIVE PRECONCEPTIONS OF HOW THE GROUP WILL
FUNCTION INTO A MORE OPEN AND POSITIVE OUTLOOK?
• 2. HOW DO YOU SEE HAMAD CHALLENGING THE GRANDMOTHER’S COGNITION, OR HER
AUTOMATIC THOUGHTS THAT ARE INFLUENCING HER EMOTIONS AND BEHAVIORS?
• 3. THE GRANDMOTHER, THROUGH HER EXPERIENCE, HAS BEEN CONDITIONED TO BE
WARY OF GROUPS AND UNIMPRESSED BY YOUNG SOCIAL WORKERS. HOW DOES
HAMAD HELP THE GRANDMOTHER OVERCOME THIS CONDITIONING?
 BENEFITS AND LIMITATIONS OF COGNITIVE
AND BEHAVIORAL THEORIES

• BENEFITS
• STRONG EMPIRICAL SUPPORT
• OFFERS A WIDE RANGE OF SPECIFIC INTERVENTIONS
• LENDS ITSELF TO MEASUREMENT

•  LIMITATIONS
• TENDS TO FOCUS A LOT ON THE INDIVIDUAL AND LESS ON MACRO INFLUENCES
• MAY GIVE SOCIAL WORKER TOO MUCH AUTHORITY IN THE HELPING RELATIONSHIP