Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy

1617 Words4 Pages

Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) is a form of Cognitive Behavior Therapy created by Albert Ellis. REBT was one of the first types of cognitive therapies and was first called rational therapy. In 1959 the name was changed to Rational Emotive Therapy and did not get its current name, Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy, until 1992. REBT is based on believing that feeling upset is not caused by an event but rather our beliefs toward the event that upsets us. When people have irrational beliefs about external or internal effects problems occur. The objective of REBT is to help individuals modify illogical beliefs and negative thinking to transcend psychological problems and mental distress. “According to Albert Ellis and REBT, the vast majority of us want to be happy” (Ross, 2006). People want to be happy in all situations, all alone and with others, we want jobs we can enjoy and jobs that pay well and various other possessions. When life throws someone a curveball, it is reacted to in one of two ways: healthy or unhealthy. In order to make sure we react to life’s curveballs, the ABC model was developed. The ABC model is used to show how beliefs cause emotional and behavioral reactions. A, or activating event is what happened to you, what your “camera” saw. B, or beliefs about the activating event, is what you tell yourself when the event happened. C, the consequences, is how you feel and how you act based upon your beliefs. An example of this would be A, you are falsely accused of stealing from your school and you may be expelled from school. Because of this you believe, B, I need to defend myself, I cannot forfeit my education. So C, You feel anxious and scared. When using the A... ... middle of paper ... ...l as a number of techniques that can be used with clients and can also be applied when using other forms of therapy. REBT is applicable to the outdoor setting and can also work with clients in individual, group, family, or couples counseling. Because of REBT’s short and effective use, as well as its ability to be applied to many forms of therapy, especially in the outdoor setting, I have chosen it to be my theoretical orientation at this point in my Adventure Therapy career. Work Cited Ross, W. (2006). What is rebt?. Retrieved from http://www.rebtnetwork.org/whatis.html Cherry, K. (n.d.). Rational emotive behavior therapy. Retrieved from http://psychology.about.com/od/typesofpsychotherapy/a/rational-emotive-behavior-therapy.htm Corey, G. (2011). Theory and practice of counseling and psychotherapy. (ninth ed., pp. 291-301). Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole.

Open Document