Strengths and weaknesses of behavior therapy and cognitive behavior therapy

CBT

Strengths and weaknesses of behavioral therapy and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

Cognitive behavioral therapy and cognitive therapy have grown increasingly popular as counseling techniques in the past twenty years, partially in response to criticisms that other forms of therapy, such as Freudian psychoanalysis caused the client to dwell too much on past grievances, and not enough on dealing with the challenges of the present. Instead of blaming past or present circumstances, CBT focuses on changing immediate behaviors: "Cognitive-behavioral therapy is based on the idea that our thoughts cause our feelings and behaviors, not external things, like people, situations, and events. The benefit of this fact is that we can change the way we think to feel / act better even if the situation does not change" (CBT, 2007, NACBT). The past cannot be altered -- for example, even if someone may have been propelled into alcoholism by an abusive childhood, that childhood cannot be erased. Nor can the present feelings and actions of others in the client's life changed: someone with an unfairly demanding parent cannot alter that parent's exacting attitude. What can be changed is the behavior -- the alcoholic can stop using the substance and find positive ways of coping, the child with the perfectionist mother can stop taking the parent's criticism to heart. This present-focused technique creates a sense of empowerment for the individual. He or she is not dependant upon others, or helpless in the face of the past, and can still make a positive change for the better, in his or her attitudes and behaviors.

CBT has also been seen as particularly effective within the modern structure of therapy, which often allows only a few sessions to deal with a highly specific problem, like substance abuse. Very few individuals have the time or the inclination to spend long amounts of time going over the past, or going through a long, traumatic period of being helpless on the therapist while excavating a variety of vague issues. The average length of CBT is only sixteen sessions. Furthermore, the end of the therapy is predetermined by the client and therapist, thus there is no sense of insecurity or abandonment when and if the therapy ends. The relationship between therapist and client is professional with a certain emotional distance which minimizes the chance of projection of pleasant ("my therapist is my best friend") or unpleasant emotions onto the therapist. Because the therapist must ask searing and searching questions of the client, this type of professionalism is essential. The therapist treats the client like an adult: "Therapists focus on teaching rational self-counseling skills," that the client can use in his or her life (CBT, 2007, NACBT). The client is viewed as possessing the means to change him or herself, and the decision to change must be a choice, made on the part of the client. This is why CBT uses the Socratic Method, prompting clients to question their assumptions and behavioral patterns with probing queries: 'Why can't you talk to strangers? What would happen if you tried?' Clients are also given homework, or specific, behavioral actions they are encouraged to perform, such as talk to a stranger, for example if the client is socially self-conscious. In contrast to Freudian therapy's focus on the irrational, subconscious mind, CBT sees clients as rational actors who can intelligently examine their lives.