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Cognitive therapy encompasses a wide umbrella of approaches. One of the most widely-known of these approaches is cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), but there is another commonly known technique often considered the predecessor of CBT: rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT).
REBT is commonly used to help people manage anxiety, depression, OCD, and other, behavioral and emotional issues. Read on to learn how REBT works, what techniques it uses, and how it differs from CBT.
What Is REBT?
Rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT) is a type of cognitive therapy that challenges irrational or self-defeating beliefs to affect behavioral change. Therapists using REBT will encourage their clients to examine their irrational thinking from multiple sides—both acknowledging the irrational nature of the thoughts and examining the reasoning behind them.
This thorough understanding helps identify and address harmful thought patterns, with the goal of preventing them in the future.
The Origins and Founding Principles of REBT
Developed in the 1950s by Albert Ellis, REBT was designed to challenge maladaptive beliefs and thoughts, ultimately facilitating behavioral change and addressing emotional issues. This approach takes a look at the connection between thoughts, behaviors, and emotions, as well as the internal impact they can have on overall well-being.
REBT functions on the ABC model, which highlights the connection between activating events, beliefs, and consequences. According to the model, certain negative or “activating” events can cause negative beliefs about yourself and/or others to form. These beliefs, often residing in the subconscious, can then influence your beliefs and behaviors going forward, making day-to-day functioning more difficult.
How Does REBT Work?
REBT encourages you to think critically about how your thoughts and emotions may be negatively impacting you, and then work to change them through acceptance. This allows you to alter unhelpful or negative beliefs and thinking patterns in a nonjudgmental way and make necessary behavior shifts.
Core Techniques in REBT
REBT uses a variety of techniques, though not all will be used to treat every client. Some common examples include:
- Cognitive restructuring: This technique focuses on identifying and challenging irrational thoughts and beliefs. It involves practices like reframing, looking for evidence behind beliefs, and even using humor to shift thinking patterns.
- Problem-solving techniques: Skills such as assertiveness, decision-making, and conflict resolution can help you gain a sense of control, confidence, and security when addressing maladaptive thought patterns.
- Mindfulness: Practicing mindfulness fosters an awareness of your emotions, making it easier to notice patterns, follow the ties between thoughts and beliefs, and even address irrational thinking or fallacies in real time.
- Practicing acceptance: Acceptance is an important part of the REBT process. By accepting your thoughts and experiences, you can examine their roots and effectively address them at the source while decreasing feelings of self-criticism. This might look like practicing unconditional acceptance of yourself, accepting certain events or situations as they occurred, or imagining worst-case scenarios and working out how to deal with them.
How Many Sessions Does REBT Take?
There is no set amount of time or number of sessions recommended for REBT. On average, though, real emotional growth and change can take 6-8 weeks. Based on your goals and your therapist’s guidance, you’ll develop a treatment plan tailored to your specific needs.
How Does REBT Approach Treatment for Anxiety?
Many core tenets of REBT, such as acceptance and challenging beliefs, can be effective in treating anxiety. Acceptance of thoughts, beliefs, and behaviors is an important part of anxiety treatment, as it empowers clients to acknowledge maladaptive patterns and examine them constructively.
Acceptance is also at work when clients challenge compensatory behaviors like avoidance. By resisting the urge to avoid uncomfortable situations and thoughts, clients begin to accept what they are experiencing and begin to change their behavior.
Clients may also start challenging misleading thoughts or beliefs by exploring worst-case scenarios. This process involves considering what could happen, evaluating its potential impact, and planning healthy ways to respond.
While REBT may touch on past events that contributed to irrational beliefs, its primary focus is on current issues, beliefs, and the present consequences of those beliefs.
REBT vs. Other Psychotherapeutic Approaches: What Is the Main Difference Between CBT and REBT?
REBT and CBT are similar, as much of CBT is derived from REBT. However, there are a couple main differences in their core approaches.
- Emphasis on acceptance: CBT focuses on the connections between thoughts, emotions, and behavior, and this process is relatively straightforward: examining feelings, noticing the thoughts and beliefs behind them, and restructuring those thoughts to become more helpful, thereby influencing maladaptive behaviors. REBT, however, looks deeper at problematic thoughts than just connecting the dots on how they are influencing behavior. REBT emphasizes the importance of accepting these thoughts and beliefs as they are, even though they may seem irrational, in an effort to heal the wounds that are behind them and improve self-esteem.
- Addressing secondary disturbances: While CBT focuses on changing problem behaviors by looking directly at the thoughts and emotions causing them, REBT has somewhat more nuance. While it does address the connection between thoughts, emotions, and behaviors, it also sees emotional disturbances as coming from two places—an initial or “activating” event, and a “secondary disturbance.” With many lifelong mental health issues, you can start reacting to both certain situations or stimuli and your reaction to that event. This reaction to a reaction can be just as impactful as the initial emotional response, and REBT places emphasis on unraveling both to improve mental health.
At the bottom line, CBT is centered around instigating change through analyzing behavior, thoughts, and emotions, while REBT wants you to accept yourself as you make these shifts, which can help inspire more lasting change.
Is REBT More Effective Than CBT?
The difference in effectiveness of CBT and REBT is minimal and often depends on the specific condition being treated. These approaches are frequently used in conjunction with other techniques, or even used side by side to tailor therapy to the client’s needs and affect more meaningful change.
If you are struggling with anxiety, depression, or another mental health condition, seeking help from a mental health professional might be a good option for you. They can assess your situation and create a personalized treatment plan using a variety of treatment approaches to help you manage your symptoms.
