Cognitive Distortions: All You Need to Know
Cognitive distortions are errors of thought and/or belief that create false perceptions of reality and by doing so create emotional distress. Cognitive distortions can be contributing factors to anxiety, depression, and other mental health disorders.
Identifying and reducing cognitive distortions is a core component of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), which is one of the most well-regarded psychotherapeutic treatment modalities available. CBT has been found to be effective in the treatment of a wide variety of mental health issues including anxiety and depressive disorders.
A background of cognitive distortions
Psychologists Albert Ellis and Aaron Beck are generally considered the pioneers of cognitive-behavioral therapy. Beck contributed rational-emotive behavioral therapy to the field while Ellis contributed cognitive therapy.
Ellis and Beck both openly acknowledged many sources of inspiration for their work, most notably, perhaps, the Stoic philosophy of ancient Greece and Rome. One particular idea expounded by the Stoic philosopher Epictetus is cited by Ellis and by Beck as being of particular importance:
Men are disturbed not by things, but by the views which they take of things.
Epictetus, Enchiridion, 5
The idea that emotional distress is primarily caused by a faulty perception of reality rather than object reality itself is the perhaps most important idea in all of CBT, and laid the groundwork for what we now refer to as cognitive distortions.
In the following section we will review how cognitive distortions have a negative impact on behaviors and emotions.
How cognitive distortions affect emotional states
The underlying principle of cognitive-behavioral therapy is that thoughts, behaviors, and emotions all influence each other bilaterally.
This means that thoughts influence behaviors and vice versa; thoughts influence emotions and vice versa; and behaviors influence emotions and vice versa.
Because of this interconnectivity, a cognitive distortion may have a “ripple effect” which influences the way we behave and the way we feel.
Much of the work in CBT is directed toward identifying these cognitive distortions and the ways in which they influence behaviors and emotions.
Once the therapist and client have gained insight into this process, the therapist can then assist the client in reducing these cognitive distortions with the aim of then reducing the negative influence that these distortions may be exhibiting on the client’s behaviors and emotions.
What are cognitive distortions?
There is no universally accepted list of cognitive distortions, and many psychologists and psychotherapists have proposed their own lists. Most lists contain about 10 to 15 distinct cognitive distortions.
An oft-cited list is that of psychologist David Burns which appears in his 1981 classic Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy. Burns lists the following ten cognitive distortions:
- all or nothing thinking
- overgeneralization
- mental filtering
- disqualifying the positive
- jumping to conclusions
- catastrophizing (worst case scenario thinking)
- emotional reasoning
- should statements
- labeling and mislabeling
- personalization
Another authoritative list comes from the 2011 Cognitive Behavioral Therapy: Basics and Beyond by Judith Beck. Beck lists twelve cognitive distortions, including:
- all or nothing thinking
- worst case scenario thinking (catastrophizing)
- disqualifying the positive
- emotional reasoning
- labeling
- magnification/minimization
- mental filtering
- mind reading
- overgeneralization
- personalization
- should statements
- tunnel vision
Confused? Don’t be.
A simple glance at these two lists will reveal many similarities, along with a few differences. Some use different names for the same distortion, and many cognitive distortions are rather similar to each other with only slight shades of meaning distinguishing them. Confused? Don’t worry — less important than a universally agreed upon list is the general idea behind them.
In the following section I will provide an alphabetized list of the cognitive distortions I most often reference in my own practice as a psychotherapist.
List of cognitive distortions
All or Nothing Thinking
Full article: All or nothing thinking
All or nothing thinking (also known as black-or-white thinking and polarized thinking occurs when we believe something to be either entirely right or entirely wrong.
For example: Alex has set a goal to go screen-free each night after 10pm. She achieves this for several nights in a row, but tonight she loses track of time while watching TV and suddenly it’s 10:15pm. She succumbs to all-or-nothing thinking and decides that since she failed to meet her goal of turning the TV off at 10pm, she gives up on the goal entirely and decides that she may as well finish the entire season of whichever show it is she is watching.
The problem: Because the goal didn’t go exactly as planned, she gave up on it entirely, thinking, “Either it’s all right, or it’s all wrong.” It’s all or nothing.
Blaming
Full article: Blaming
Blaming occurs when we wrongly assign the responsibility of a negative outcome either to ourselves or someone else.
For example: Mary and her husband Frank out of town on vacation when Mary gets a phone call from a contractor who is at their house. She realizes that they forgot to reschedule this appointment. Mary blames Frank for this, even though both of them share the blame as both were aware of the appointment.
The problem: By shifting blame away from herself and onto Frank, this causes an argument between them which leaves them both angry and spoils an entire afternoon of their vacation.
Emotional reasoning
Full article: Emotional reasoning
Emotional reasoning occurs when we mistake our feelings for facts.
For example: Hannah texted a friend this morning and has not received a response. She feels sad that her friend hasn’t responded, and therefore concludes that she is unlikeable. Her conclusion is based on her emotional reaction (sadness), rather than any concrete evidence.
The problem: By engaging in emotional reasoning, she has failed to account for any other reason that her friend has not gotten back to her, including the possibility that her friend is busy, has not seen the message yet, or any other number of reasonable explanations.
Jumping to conclusions
Full article: Jumping to conclusions
Jumping to conclusions occurs when we make unhealthy assumptions that are not supported by facts.
For example: Henry broke up with his partner because he jumped to the conclusion that his partner was preparing to break up with him first. He came to this conclusion because his partner had been emotionally distant for several days prior. He did not, however, broach this topic with his partner, who in reality had no intention to break up with him but was instead stressed about an important deadline at work.
The problem: By jumping to a conclusion that turned out to be incorrect, Henry may have unnecessarily doomed his relationship.
Mental filtering
Full article: Mental filtering
Mental filtering occurs when we “filter out” positive information or events and are left with only the negative ones.
For example: Tom had a great night at a friend’s party, but when he returned home he realized he had a small piece of food stuck between two of his front teeth. Suddenly, all memories of his many positive interactions at the party evaporate as he ruminates on his embarrassing oversight.
The problem: Tom has filtered out all of the positive indications that the night went well and has instead hyper-focused on one negative event that seemingly was not a big deal as his interactions appeared to be positive.
Overgeneralization
Full article: Overgeneralization
Overgeneralization occurs when we draw a big conclusion from a small, and usually negative, sample. The sample is often based on personal experience.
For example: Bill proposes an idea in a business meeting that is met with an unfriendly reception. After the meeting, he ruminates on the belief that, “no one takes [him] seriously.”
The problem: Bill experienced a negative outcome when his idea was not received warmly, and it’s normal to feel a degree of sadness, anger, or distress about this. However, by overgeneralizing this event to make a broad statement about how “no one” takes him seriously, he has created a negative, long-term narrative about himself.
Should statements
Full article: Should statements
Should statements occur when we create unnecessarily rigid expecations about ourselves, others, or the world at-large, often using the language of “shoulds.”
For example: Noah is depressed because he hasn’t progressed in his career the way he believes he should have by now.
The problem: Noah created a rigid expectation for his career trajectory, and because he has failed to meet this trajectory, he is now depressed. Because he has not been flexible when evaluating his career, he has not taken into consideration mitigating factors that could have slowed his progress, or explored avenues for progress that may be available to him now.
Worst case scenario thinking
Full article: Worst case scenario thinking
Worst case scenario thinking (or catastrophizing) occurs when we greatly exaggerate the possibility of an extremely negative outcome.
For example: Jake fears that his stomach ache may be indicative of a life-threatening condition.
The problem: There are a very large number of issues that can cause stomach pain, and many of them are temporary and minor. Therefore, Jake may be causing himself significant and unnecessary distress by over-exaggerating the danger of his stomach ache.
Conclusion
Understanding and identifying cognitive distortions is an essential aspect of cognitive-behavioral therapy, because cognitive distortions influence the way we behave and the way we feel. By familiarizing ourselves with the most common cognitive distortions, we avail ourselves of a powerful tool to improve and maintain good mental health.
Photo credit:
- Photograph of Epictetus licensed under Creative Commons zero.
- Photo by Sander Sammy on Unsplash
