What is Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT)?
What is Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT)?
Rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT) is a type of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) developed by psychologist Albert Ellis. REBT is an action-oriented approach that’s focused on helping people deal with irrational beliefs and learn how to manage their emotions, thoughts, and behaviors in a healthier, more realistic way. When people hold irrational beliefs about themselves or the world, problems can result. The goal of REBT is to help people recognize and alter those beliefs and negative thinking patterns in order to overcome psychological problems and mental distress. REBT can be particularly helpful for people living with a variety of issues, including:Depression, anxiety, addictive behaviors, phobias, procrastination, disordered eating habits, aggression, and sleep problems.
History of REBT.
Rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT) is an action-oriented cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) developed by Albert Ellis in 1954. The Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy, as the name suggests came into existence because of Ellis’s belief that the person should be the center of their own world and not because events are causing them to behave in a certain way. During his early years as a psychotherapist, he experimented with several techniques. He eventually developed one called rational therapy which focused on altering irrational beliefs, or what we now call irrational thought processes or behaviors. Rational Therapy is based on the premise that our thoughts, feelings, and actions are all designed to solve problems. Beliefs are part of this process; beliefs about who we are, our past behavior, other people’s behaviors, what may be possible in the future etcetera all influence the way we behave.
Theory Behind REBT
Rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT) is a cognitive behavioral therapy that helps people cope with anxiety and depression, as well as anger and interpersonal problems. It was developed in the 1950s by Albert Ellis, who argued that negative emotions are products of faulty thinking. His ideas have been replicated and expanded by other psychologists and philosophers, including Aaron Beck, David Burns and Wayne Dyer. The theory underpinning this type of therapy is that humans are not entirely rational creatures. This should go without saying, but sometimes we can use a reminder that humans are not simple computers that take an input, read it logically, and produce an appropriate output; rather, we are complex “computers” with an unfathomably large number of inputs, complicated and mysterious internal processes, and an unfathomably large number of potential outputs.
How REBT works?
REBT is grounded in the idea that people generally want to do well in life. For example, you probably want to achieve your goals and find happiness. But sometimes, irrational thoughts and feelings get in the way. These beliefs can influence how you perceive circumstances and events — usually not for the better. Imagine you’ve texted someone you’ve been dating for a month. You see they’ve read the message, but several hours pass with no reply. By the next day, they still haven’t replied. You might start to think that they’re ignoring you because they don’t want to see you. You might also tell yourself that you did something wrong when you last saw them, you may then tell yourself that relationships never work out and that you will be alone for the rest of your life. Here’s how this example illustrates the core principles — called the ABCs — of REBT:
A refers to the activating event or situation that triggers a negative reaction or response. In this example, the A is the lack of reply.
B refers to the beliefs or irrational thoughts you might have about an event or situation. The B in the example is the belief that they don’t want to see you anymore or that you’ve done something wrong and that you will be alone for the rest of your life.
C refers to the Consequences, often the distressing emotions, that result from the irrational thoughts or beliefs. In this example, that might include feelings of worthlessness or not being good enough. In this scenario, REBT would focus on helping you to reframe how you think about why the person didn’t respond. Maybe they were busy or simply forgot to respond. Or maybe they aren’t interested in meeting you again; if so, that doesn’t mean there’s something wrong with you or that you will spend the rest of your life alone.
What techniques are used in REBT?
REBT uses three main types of techniques, which correspond with the ABCs. Each therapist might use a slightly different combination of techniques depending on both their past clinical experiences and your symptoms.
Problem-solving techniques: These strategies can help address the activating event (A).
They often include working to develop:
Problem-solving skills
Assertiveness
Social skills
Decision-making skills
Conflict resolution skills
Cognitive restructuring techniques: These strategies help you to change irrational beliefs (B).
They might include:
Logical or rationalizing techniques
Guided imagery and visualization
Reframing, or looking at events in a different way
Humor and irony
Exposure to a feared situation
Disputing irrational thoughts
Coping techniques
Coping techniques: can help you better manage the emotional consequences (C) of irrational thoughts.
These coping techniques may include:
Relaxation
Hypnosis
Meditation
Three REBT activities and exercises
Imagine the Worst
Catastrophizing involves “worst-case” thinking and can be an extremely common cognitive distortion. Frequently, we fear the uncertainty of potential negative events, even despite a lack of objective facts to support their occurrence.
Imagine the Worst…
can be used when attempting to avoid thinking about worst possible scenarios for fear of becoming even more anxious. In this exercise, fear can be faced by envisioning it.
This can help realize that:
The worst-case scenario is unrealistic and thus unlikely to occur.
Even if it did occur, the worst-case scenario will probably still be tolerable.
In the event that it happens, the outcome can be manage and prevent it from becoming catastrophic.
Blown Out of All Proportion
This technique involves both imagery and humor, combining two of the cognitive restructuring techniques for maximum effectiveness. It builds on “worst-case imagery” for reasons that will become obvious. In this session, you can imagine that the thing you fear happening the most actually happened. You can visualize it realistically and to an extreme, blowing it entirety out of proportion. When things are this exaggerated, they become funny. Laughing at their blown-up fears will help the you get control over them.
Disputing Irrational Beliefs (DIBS) Handout
One of the most popular cognitive restructuring techniques is called disputing irrational beliefs (DIBS) or simply disputing. The point of DIBS is to question yourself on some of your limiting or harmful beliefs and essentially “logic” them out of existence.
Here are the questions to ask yourself:
What is the self-defeating irrational belief I would like to dispute and reduce?
Am I able to support this belief with objective facts?
What proof is there that this belief is false?
Is there any proof that this belief is true?
What positive things could I cause to happen if my undesirable scenarios pan out?
Although this technique can be highly effective for irrational beliefs, it will not always work for your deepest or long-held beliefs. These are harder to dispute but not impossible; Ellis recommends recording your irrational belief and several disputes to the belief, then listening to it repeatedly and even allowing your therapist, therapy group, or loved ones to listen to it with you.