Online Content

1. Adler, Karen J., "Depression, Perception and Cognition"

Type:
Document
Date Created:
1987
Collection:
System Dynamic Society Records
Collecting Area:
University Archives
Collection ID:
ua435
Parent Record(s):
23d738ba88f8333bc39725f9cb5bd0b8, 83d7d84d4a906b77a877f50ccddf0ccd, and ef456d2a6c943c510d5169405dfd9416
Thumbnail Path Ss:
/downloads/z890sb90n?file=thumbnail
System Modified Dtsi:
2020-01-02T18:40:50Z
Description:
Depression is one of the leading psychiatric disorders today. A new approach known as cognitive therapy has made significant gains in treating depression by helping people change their understanding of their actions and environment. The approach is based on the assumption that it is primarily a person's thought process concerning circumstances, rather than the circumstances per se, that are central to depression. In this paper, we develop a system dynamics model that can be used to explain more fully the dynamics of the processes that lead to depression, as well as the dynamics of getting better. The model is used as a vehicle to integrate the many facets of cognitive therapy to a coherent classification of the technique. A variety of case studies are used as a basis of model development and evaluation. The model is simple enough to be understood by people who do not have formal training in system dynamics. As such, it serves as both a valuable tool for therapists practicing cognitive therapy as well as a means of communication to the general public of the nature of cognitive therapy.