Rational-emotional (rational-emotive) therapy (RET) was created by Albert Ellis in 1955. Its original version was called "rational therapy", but in 1961 it was renamed RET, since this term better reflects the essence of this direction. In 1993, Ellis began to use a new name for his method - rational-emotional-behavioral therapy (REBT). The term "behavioral" was introduced in order to show the great importance that this direction attaches to working with the actual behavior of the client.

According to rational-emotional therapy, people are happiest when they set important life goals and objectives and actively strive to achieve them. However, when setting and achieving these goals and objectives, a person should keep in mind the fact that he lives in society: while defending his own interests, it is necessary to take into account the interests of the people around him. This position is opposed to the philosophy of selfishness, when the wishes of others are not respected and are not taken into account. Since people tend to be goal-driven, rational in RET means that which helps people achieve their main goals and objectives, while irrational is that which hinders their implementation. Thus, rationality is not an absolute concept, it is relative in its very essence (Ellis A., Dryden W, 2002).

RET is rational and scientific, but uses rationality and science to help people live and be happy. It is hedonistic, but welcomes not momentary, but long-term hedonism, when people can enjoy the present moment and the future, and can come to this with a maximum of freedom and discipline. She suggests that nothing superhuman most likely exists, and believes that a devout belief in superhuman powers usually leads to addiction and an increase in emotional stability. She also argues that there are no people "lower class" or worthy of damnation, no matter how unacceptable and anti-social their behavior may be. It emphasizes will and choice in all human affairs, while accepting the possibility that some human actions are determined in part by biological, social, and other forces.

A. A. Alexandrov identifies categories of patients who can be shown rational-emotional therapy:

1) patients with poor adjustment, moderate anxiety, and also with marital problems;

2) patients with sexual disorders;

3) patients with neuroses;

4) individuals with character disorders;

5) school truants, child delinquents and adult delinquents;

6) patients with borderline personality disorder syndrome;

7) psychotic patients, including patients with hallucinations when they are in contact with reality;

8) individuals with mild forms of mental retardation;

9) patients with psychosomatic problems.

It is clear that RET does not have a direct effect on the patient's somatic or neurological symptoms, but it helps the patient to change his attitude and overcome neurotic reactions to the disease, strengthens his tendencies to fight the disease (Fedorov A.P., 2002). As B. D. Karvasarsky notes, rational-emotional therapy is indicated primarily for patients capable of introspection, analysis of their thoughts. It involves the active participation of the patient at all stages of psychotherapy, establishing relationships close to partnership with him, which is helped by a joint discussion of the possible goals of psychotherapy, problems that the patient would like to solve (usually these are symptoms of a somatic plan or chronic emotional discomfort).

Getting started involves informing the patient about the philosophy of rational-emotional therapy, which states that it is not the events themselves that cause emotional problems, but their evaluation.

Ellis puts forward a number of criteria for psychological health.

1. Compliance with one's own interests. Reasonable and emotionally healthy people usually put their own interests first and put them at least a little above the interests of other people. They sacrifice themselves to a certain extent for the sake of those they care about, but never completely go into it.

2. Social interest. The social interest is rational and, as a rule, a personal interest, because most people, choosing to live and spend time in social groups or society, are forced to honor morality, respect the rights of others and promote social survival, otherwise they are unlikely to be able to create a world in which they themselves could live comfortably and happily.

3. Self-government. Healthy people usually tend to take responsibility for their lives and at the same time prefer to cooperate with others. They do not need any significant help and support and do not require it from others, although they may like IT.

4. High tolerance for frustration. Rational people give themselves and others the right to make mistakes. Even if they really do not like their own behavior or the behavior of other people, they are not inclined to directly condemn themselves and others, but judge only unacceptable and intolerant actions. People who don't suffer from debilitating emotional distress do what St. Francis and Reynold Niebuhr do: fix those undesirable conditions they can change, accept what they can't change, and have the wisdom to tell one from the other.

5. Flexibility. Healthy and mature people are flexible, willing to change, non-fanatic and pluralistic in their views of other people. They do not set rigid and unchanging rules for themselves or for others.

6. Acceptance of uncertainty. Healthy men and women tend to recognize and accept the idea that we live in a world of probability and chance, where absolute certainty does not exist and may never exist. These people are aware that life in such a probabilistic and uncertain world is fascinating and exciting, but it is certainly not terrible. They like order quite strongly, but they don't demand to know exactly what the future will bring and what will happen to them.

7. Devotion to creative pursuits. Most people feel healthier and happier when they are completely absorbed in something external to themselves and have at least one strong creative interest or activity that they consider so important that they organize a significant part of their life around it.

8. Scientific thinking. Less anxious individuals have more objective, realistic, and scientific thinking than more anxious individuals. They can deeply feel and act on feelings, but are able to regulate their emotions and actions, reflecting them and evaluating their consequences depending on the extent to which they contribute to the achievement of short-term and long-term goals.

9. Self acceptance. Healthy people are usually glad that they are alive, and accept themselves only because they live and can enjoy it. They don't judge their inner worth by outer accomplishments or what others think of them. They sincerely choose unconditional self-acceptance and try not to evaluate themselves - neither their totality nor their being. They seek to enjoy, not to assert themselves.

10. Riskiness. Emotionally healthy people tend to take risks and try to do what they want, even if there is a high chance of failure. They are brave, but not reckless.

11. Delayed hedonism. Well-adjusted people usually seek both the pleasures of the present moment and those joys of life that the future promises; they rarely turn a blind eye to future losses for the sake of momentary gains. They are hedonistic, that is, they strive for happiness and avoid pain, but they admit that they still have some time to live and that therefore they need to think not only about today, but also about tomorrow and not allow momentary pleasures to take hold of them.

12. Dystopianism. Healthy people accept it as a fact that utopia is unattainable and that they will never be able to get everything they want or get rid of everything that hurts. They are not trying to fight for unrealistic total happiness, perfection and joy, or to completely get rid of anxiety, depression, self-reproach and cruelty.

13. Responsibility for your emotional disorders. Healthy individuals take much of the responsibility for their emotional problems on themselves rather than defensively blaming others or social conditions for their own self-destructive thoughts, feelings, and actions (Ellis A., Dryden W, 2002).

THE RELATIONSHIP OF THE PSYCHOTHERAPIST WITH THE CLIENT

Rational-emotional therapy focuses on problem solving. As A.A. Alexandrov notes, patients take a dictatorial, dogmatic, absolutist position: they demand, they insist, they dictate. Emotional disorder appears when individuals have a strong belief that their desires must be satisfied. Their demands, their dictates, are that they must succeed; other people must approve of them. They insist that others treat them fairly. They dictate how the world should be and demand that it be more acceptable.

In the process of presenting complaints, the therapist invites the client to choose which problem needs to be solved first. RET is an active-directive therapy. The active-directive style is expressed in the fact that the therapist leads the client through clearly structured stages of therapy, vigorously suppresses sidetracking, offers methods and solutions, not being afraid to demonstrate how to master individual methods and techniques. The client is initially directed towards the strategic goal - the adoption of a new, rational philosophy, the replacement of irrational attitudes with rational ones in the problem area.

At the very beginning of therapy, the client can be given, for example, the following instructions: “The therapy that we are starting is aimed at teaching you to manage your emotions and get rid of negative experiences. In the early stages of the work, you will be given the opportunity to understand the ways in which you yourself created your negative feelings. You can also change these ways and thereby experience other, positive emotions. All this will require you to be active in your work both here in the office and at home, since therapy involves doing homework, listening to audio recordings, reading special literature. I cannot be a magician and a magician who, with the wave of an eye, relieves you of illness and problems. I can be a guide that will help you get on the road to your desired goal ”(Fedorov A.P., 2002).

Rational-emotional therapy is impossible without the patient's self-disclosure, so the therapist must create conditions conducive to this process. He monitors and realizes what the difficulties of self-disclosure are connected with: with fears of publishing facts, with insufficient experience of self-disclosure, with a rigid stereotype of behavior, behind which an irrational attitude such as: "A man must solve his problems himself" can be hidden. In such cases, the psychotherapist should once again explain the essence of rational-emotional therapy, which requires sincerity, openness in the discussion of actual painful and avoided topics.

Without establishing a full-fledged contact between the doctor and the patient, the methods used may not give the desired effect, then the therapy will be directed to goals that are irrelevant to the patient. Consideration of the pace of progress, support and assistance to the client, both through verbal interventions and on a non-verbal level, can all contribute to the client's self-disclosure.

At the same time, rational-emotive therapy does not emphasize empathic support as much as, for example, Rogers' client-centered therapy does. According to the RET, one must, of course, accept patients, but at the same time one should criticize them, point out shortcomings in their behavior. Warmth and support often help patients live happier lives with unrealistic concepts. Ellis believes that an active-directive, cognitive-emotional-behavioral "attack" on self-defeating obligations and orders of patients is effective. The essence of effective psychotherapy, according to RET, is the combination of complete tolerance for the patient (unconditional acceptance of the client) with the struggle against his self-defeating ideas, traits and actions.

When starting to work on the patient's belief system, the therapist first of all seeks to identify his irrational attitudes. As we already know, the presence of irrational attitudes means the existence of a rigid connection between descriptive and evaluative cognition - a connection that implies a one-way development of events. Therefore, the use by patients of such words as “should”, “should”, “necessary” (“tyranny of must”) helps to identify rigid emotional-cognitive schemes. They are the object of "therapeutic attacks". Often the therapist "leads" the patient in a conversation to the use of these words, expresses hypothetical sentences containing them in order to force the patient to recognize their power over himself (Aleksandrov A.A., 1997).

After identifying irrational attitudes, the therapist proceeds to reconstruct the belief system; In this case, the impact is carried out at three levels: cognitive, emotional and behavioral.

Impact at the cognitive level. Rational-emotional therapy attempts to show patients that they are better off giving up perfectionism if they want to live a happier and less anxious life. She teaches them to be aware of their “must”, “should”, “should”; to separate rational beliefs from irrational (absolutist) ones; apply the logical-empirical method of science to oneself and one's problems; accept reality, no matter how cruel and harsh they may be. RET helps patients hone their cognitive processes. It is explanatory and didactic.

Rational-emotional therapy uses a Socratic type of dialogue between the patient and the therapist. Cognitive debate is used. This technique includes proving the validity of the patient's irrational attitude. The task of the psychotherapist is to clarify the meaning and demonstrate its logical inconsistency. In the process of such a dispute, a secondary gain can be revealed, which gives the preservation of the irrational attitude. RET encourages discussion, explanation and identification of the causes of inefficient thinking, teaches semantic accuracy. For example, if a patient is rejected, this does not mean that he will always be rejected; if the patient fails, this does not mean that he cannot succeed (Aleksandrov A. A., 1997).

Impact on an emotional level. The therapist uses various ways of dramatizing preferences and shoulds so that patients can clearly distinguish between these two phenomena - “it would be better” and “should”, for which there is a role-playing game that shows patients what false ideas guide them and how this affects their relationship with other people. The therapist may use simulations to show patients how to accept different ideas. Using humor, the therapist absurdizes irrational thoughts and, through unconditional acceptance, shows that patients accept them despite the presence of negative traits, which gives clients an impulse to accept themselves. The therapist uses emotionally charged dissuasion, leading patients to discard some absurd ideas and replace them with more reasonable concepts.

The therapist encourages risk-taking behavior:

a) invites patients of a psychotherapeutic group to tell frankly to one of its participants what they think of him. As a result, patients are convinced that it is actually not so risky;

b) encourages patients to self-disclosure by offering, for example, to talk about deviations in their sexual life. This experience convinces them that others can accept them despite their shortcomings;

c) invites patients to get in touch with their "shameful" feelings, such as hostility, which gives them the opportunity to reveal the thoughts that precede these feelings.

The therapist may also use sensory gratification techniques, such as cuddling with other group members. This is not done for momentary pleasure, but to show patients that they are able to perform pleasurable actions that they would never have dared to do before, for pure pleasure, without feeling guilty, even if others do not approve of them for this. (Aleksandrov A. A., 1997).

Impact at the behavioral level. Behavioral methods, notes A.A. Alexandrov, are used in rational-emotional therapy not only to eliminate symptoms, but also to change the cognitions of patients. Thus, the tendency of patients to perfectionism can be reduced by the following tasks of the therapist:

a) take risks, such as trying to date someone of the opposite sex;

b) intentionally fail in solving a problem, for example, deliberately speak badly in front of the public;

c) imagine yourself in situations of failure;

d) enthusiastically take up activities that the patient considers especially dangerous.

Giving up patients' demands that others treat them fairly and that goodness and justice rule the world can be achieved by offering them the following tasks:

a) to stay in bad circumstances for a while and learn to accept them;

b) perform difficult tasks (for example, entering a university or a prestigious job);

c) imagine yourself in a situation of deprivation of something and at the same time not feel upset;

d) indulge in some pleasant activity (go to the movies, meet friends) only after completing an unpleasant but necessary task (a French lesson or completing a report for your boss), etc.

RET often uses operant conditioning to get rid of bad habits (smoking, overeating) or changing irrational thinking (for example, condemning oneself for smoking or overeating) (Aleksandrov A.A., 1997).

Other behavioral techniques used in RET include:

1) the "Stay There" exercise, which provides the client with the opportunity to endure the chronic discomfort of being in an unpleasant situation for a long time;

2) exercises in which the client is encouraged to force himself to get down to business immediately, without putting it off until later, while at the same time suffering from the discomfort of fighting the habit of putting everything off until tomorrow;

3) the use of rewards and punishments to induce the client to take on an unpleasant task in pursuit of his delayed goals (severe punishments are especially helpful in the case of strongly resistant clients);

4) from time to time the client is encouraged to behave as if he already thinks rationally, so that he can understand from his own experience that change is possible (Ellis A., Dryden W, 2002).

In the most general terms, in order to achieve a change in worldview, Ellis recommends the following to clients.

1. Recognize that they create their own psychological problems to a large extent and, although environmental conditions may play a significant role in their problems, they are usually taken into account in the process of change in the second place.

2. Fully recognize that they are able to thoroughly cope with their own difficulties.

3. Understand that emotional disorders are mainly due to irrational, absolutist and dogmatic views.

4. Define your irrational beliefs and distinguish between them and their rational alternative.

5. Challenge these irrational beliefs using realistic, logical, and heuristic methods, as well as by feeling and acting against them.

6. Work to internalize new, effective perspectives using a variety of cognitive, emotional, and behavioral change methods.

7. Continue the process of changing irrational beliefs and using multimodal methods throughout your life.

TECHNIQUES THAT ARE AVOIDED IN RATIONAL EMOTIONAL THERAPY

So, RET is a multimodal form of therapy that welcomes the use of cognitive, emotional and behavioral modality techniques. However, due to the fact that the choice of therapeutic techniques is based on theory, in practice some techniques are not used or are used extremely rarely. Among them, the following should be highlighted (Ellis A., Dryden W, 2002):

1. Techniques that make clients more dependent (for example, the therapist's excessive warmth as a strong reinforcer, the creation and analysis of a replacement neurosis).

2. Techniques that make people more gullible and suggestible (for example, seeing the world through rose-colored glasses).

3. Techniques that are verbose and ineffective (eg, psychoanalytic methods in general and free association in particular, which encourage the client to give lengthy descriptions of the activating experience, or "A").

4. Methods that help the client feel better in a short time, but do not guarantee stable improvement (for example, separate empirical techniques in which feelings are fully expressed in a dramatic, cathartic and abreactive manner are part of the methods and basic techniques of Gestalt therapy, dangerous in that they may encourage people to put into practice the philosophy behind emotions such as anger).

5. Techniques that distract clients from working on their dysfunctional worldview (eg, relaxation, yoga, and other cognitive distraction techniques). They can, however, be used together with cognitive challenge to give way to shifts in philosophy.

6. Techniques that may inadvertently reinforce a philosophy of low frustration tolerance (eg gradual desensitization).

7. Techniques in which there is an anti-scientific philosophy (for example, suggestion therapy and mysticism).

8. Techniques that attempt to change the activating event (A) before demonstrating to the client how one can change one's irrational beliefs (C) (eg, individual family therapy techniques).

9. Techniques without sufficient empirical support (eg, NLP, non-directive therapy, rebirthing).

Example. Using a boolean argument.

Here Ellis challenges the client's irrational belief that if he treats his friend very well and fairly, then the friend simply has to treat him the same way. Ellis uses mostly logical arguments.

Ellis. Suppose you accurately describe the situation with your friend - he treats you vilely and meanly after all the time you have done good towards him. Why does it follow from the fact that you behave well towards him that he should return kindness to you?

Customer. Because it would be dishonorable of him if he acted differently!

Ellis. Yes, we agree with this. He is really dishonest, and you are decent. Can you jump around like this: “Since I am decent towards him, he must be decent towards me”?

Customer. But he is wrong if he acts dishonestly, when I - decently.

(At this point, Ellis and his client have opposite goals. Ellis keeps asking the client why his friend should be decent to him, and the client keeps saying that his friend is wrong and dishonest, which Ellis doesn't ask.)

Ellis. I agree. But from the fact that you are decent and supposedly honest, and from the fact that he uses your decency, does it still follow that he must be honest and treat you decently?

Customer. Logically follows.

Ellis. Truth? For me it looks like complete absurdity.

Customer. Like this?

(It is typical for Ellis to change emphasis. He claims that the client's belief is illogical, and waits for the client to ask why before expanding on this topic, he wants to get the client to ask: "Why do you say that?")

Ellis. Well, it is logical and consistent that it would be preferable if he treated you decently when you do him good. But aren't you making the illogical - or "magic" - jump: "Since it would be preferable if he behaved decently towards me, then he is absolutely obliged to do so"? What universal "logical" law leads to yours, "He absolutely must do this"?

Customer. Probably none.

Ellis. In logic, we get the necessary conclusions, for example: "If all men are people and John is a man, then he must be a man." Your "logic" says: "People who are treated fairly often act decently towards others; I act decently towards others; I act decently towards my friend, so it is absolutely essential that he behave in the same way towards me.”

Is this a logical conclusion?

(Here is another typical Ellis strategy. He starts by remarking in a didactic manner. As in this case, this remark illustrates a rational idea (here a logical idea). He then contrasts it with the client's irrational idea (here an illogical idea), but does not tells the client that his idea is illogical, but encourages him to think for himself by asking, "Is this a logical conclusion?" This passage is worth studying in detail because it is very typical of Ellis' effective discussion.)

Customer. I think no.

Ellis. Moreover, you seem to be arguing that since your friend has treated you dishonorably when you have only done him good, his actions make him a mean person. Is this reasoning logical?

(Ellis extracts the belittlement of the other from his client's "shoulds" and "must"s.)

Customer. Why not?

(As you will see, Ellis answers the client's question right away. You could encourage the client to try to answer his own question before going on a didactic note.)

Ellis. It's illogical because you're generalizing too much. You jump from his low deeds - or even from one of his traits - to an assessment of his essence, his totality as "low". Why does such an overgeneralization follow from several of his actions?

(Here Ellis states a logical fallacy the client is making by showing him how that fallacy is represented in his belief about a friend, and finally asking him about the logic of that belief.)

Customer. Now I see that it shouldn't.

Ellis. So what conclusion can be drawn instead?

(Here Ellis encourages the client to be active in their reasoning.)

Customer. Well, I might think that he is not his main actions. He is a man who often, but not always, behaves indecently.

He formulated a number of provisions that are actively used in practical correctional psychology. One of these provisions, often quoted by Ellis, is the statement: "People are not disturbed by things, but by the way they see them" (Epictetus).

Based on emphatically scientific approaches in the structure of individual consciousness, A. Ellis seeks to free the client from the bonds and blinders of stereotypes and clichés, to provide a freer and more open-minded view of the world. In the concept of A. Ellis, a person is interpreted as self-evaluating, self-supporting and self-speaking.

A. Ellis believes that every person is born with a certain potential, and this potential has two sides: rational and irrational; constructive and destructive, etc. According to A. Ellis, psychological problems appear when a person tries to follow simple preferences (desires for love, approval, support) and mistakenly believes that these simple preferences are the absolute measure of his success in life. In addition, a person is a creature extremely subject to various influences at all levels - from. Therefore, A. Ellis is not inclined to reduce all the changeable complexity of human nature to one thing.

RET distinguishes three leading psychological aspects of human functioning: thoughts (cognitions), feelings and behavior. A. Ellis identified two types of cognition: descriptive and evaluative.

Descriptive cognitions contain information about reality, about what a person has perceived in the world, this is "pure" information about reality. Evaluative cognitions reflect a person's attitude to this reality. Descriptive cognitions are necessarily connected with evaluative connections of varying degrees of rigidity.
Non-objective events in themselves cause us positive or negative emotions, and our internal perception of these events - their evaluation. We feel what we think about what we perceive. are the result of cognitive impairments (such as overgeneralization, false conclusions, and rigid attitudes).

The source of psychological disorders is a system of individual irrational ideas about the world, learned, as a rule, in childhood from significant adults. A. Ellis called these violations irrational attitudes. From the point of view of A. Ellis, these are rigid links between descriptive and evaluative cognitions such as instructions, requirements, mandatory orders that have no exceptions, and they are absolutist in nature. Therefore, irrational attitudes do not correspond to reality, both in strength and in quality of this prescription. If irrational attitudes are not implemented, they lead to long-term emotions that are inadequate to the situation and hinder the activity of the individual. The core of emotional disturbances, according to Ellis, is self-blame.

Important in RET is the concept of "trap", i.e. all those cognitive formations that create unreasonable neurotic anxiety. A normally functioning person has a rational system of evaluative cognitions, which is a system of flexible connections between descriptive and evaluative cognitions. It is of a probabilistic nature, it rather expresses a wish, a preference for a certain development of events, therefore it leads to moderate emotions, although sometimes they can be intense, but they do not capture the individual for a long time and therefore do not block his activity, do not interfere with the achievement of goals.

The occurrence of psychological problems in a client is associated with the functioning of a system of irrational attitudes.

Ellis's concept states that although it is pleasant to be loved in an atmosphere of acceptance, a person should feel vulnerable enough in such an atmosphere and not feel uncomfortable in the absence of an atmosphere of love and complete acceptance.

A. Ellis assumed that positive emotions (such as feelings of love or delight) are often associated with or are the result of an internal conviction expressed in the form of the phrase: "This is good for me." Negative emotions (such as anger or depression) are associated with the belief expressed by the phrase, "This is bad for me." He believed that the emotional response to the situation reflects the "label" that is "glued" to it (for example, it is dangerous or pleasant), even when the "label" is not true. To achieve happiness, it is necessary to rationally formulate goals and choose adequate means.

Ellis developed a kind of "neurotic code", i.e. a complex of erroneous judgments, the desire to fulfill which leads to psychological problems:
1. There is a strong need to be loved or approved by every person in a significant environment.
2. Everyone must be competent in all areas of knowledge.
3. Most people are vile, corrupt, and despicable.
4. There will be a catastrophe if events take a different path than the person programmed.
5. Human misfortunes are caused by external forces, and people have little control over them.
6. If there is a danger, then it should not be overcome.
7. It is easier to avoid certain difficulties in life than to deal with them and be responsible for them.
8. In this world, the weak always depend on the strong.
9. A person's past history should influence his immediate behavior "now".
10. Don't worry about other people's problems.
11. It is necessary to solve all problems correctly, clearly and perfectly, and if this is not the case, then a catastrophe will occur.
12. If someone does not control his emotions, then it is impossible to help him.

A. Ellis proposed his personality structure, which he named after the first letters of the Latin alphabet "ABC-theory": A - activating event; B client's opinion about the event; C - emotional or behavioral consequences of the event; D - subsequent reaction to the event as a result of mental processing; E - the final value conclusion (constructive or destructive).

This conceptual scheme has found wide application in practical correctional psychology, since it allows the client himself to conduct effective self-observation and self-analysis in the form of diary entries.
Analysis of the client's behavior or introspection according to the scheme "event - event perception - reaction - reflection - conclusion" has a high productivity and a learning effect.

"ABC-scheme" is used to help the client in a problem situation to move from irrational attitudes to rational ones. The work is being built in several stages.

The first stage is clarification, clarification of the parameters of the event (A), including the parameters that most emotionally affected the client and caused him inadequate reactions.
A \u003d (A0 + Ac) \u003d B,
where A0 is an objective event (described by a group of observers);
Ac - subjectively perceived event (described by the client);
C - a client assessment system that determines which parameters of an objective event will be perceived and will be significant.

At this stage, a personal assessment of the event takes place. Clarification allows the client to differentiate between events that can and cannot be changed. At the same time, the goal of correction is not to encourage the client to avoid a collision with an event, not to change it (for example, moving to a new job in the presence of an insoluble conflict with the boss), but to become aware of the system of evaluative cognitions that make it difficult to resolve this conflict, restructure this system, and only after This is a decision to change the situation. Otherwise, the client retains a potential vulnerability in similar situations.
The second stage is the identification of the emotional and behavioral consequences of the perceived event (C). The purpose of this stage is to identify the entire range of emotional reactions to an event (since not all emotions are easily differentiated by a person, and some are suppressed and not realized due to the inclusion of rationalization and others).

Awareness and verbalization of experienced emotions may be difficult for some clients: for some, due to a vocabulary deficit, for others, due to a behavioral deficit (lack of behavioral stereotypes in the arsenal, usually associated with a moderate expression of emotions. Such clients react with polar emotions, or strong love, or complete rejection.

The analysis of the words used by the client helps to identify irrational attitudes. Usually, irrational attitudes are associated with words that reflect the extreme degree of emotional involvement of the client (nightmarish, terrible, amazing, unbearable, etc.), having the character of a mandatory prescription (necessary, must, must, must, etc.), as well as global assessments of the person, object or events.
A. Ellis identified four most common groups of irrational attitudes that create problems:
1. Catastrophic installations.
2. Installations of obligatory obligation.
3. Installations of mandatory implementation of their needs.
4. Global evaluation settings.

The goal of the stage is achieved when irrational attitudes are identified in the problem area (there may be several of them), the nature of the connections between them (parallel, articulatory, hierarchical dependence) is shown, which makes understandable the multicomponent reaction of the individual in a problem situation.
It is also necessary to identify the rational attitudes of the client, since they constitute a positive part of the relationship, which can be expanded in the future.

The third stage is the reconstruction of irrational attitudes. Reconstruction should begin when the client easily identifies irrational attitudes in a problem situation. It can proceed: at the cognitive level, the level, the level of behavior - direct action.

Reconstruction at the cognitive level includes proof by the client of the truth of the attitude, the need to preserve it in a given situation. In the process of this kind of evidence, the client sees even more clearly the negative consequences of maintaining this attitude. The use of auxiliary modeling (how others would solve this problem, what attitudes they would have at the same time) makes it possible to form new rational attitudes at the cognitive level.

Reconstruction at the level of imagination uses both negative and positive imagination. The client is asked to mentally immerse themselves in a traumatic situation. With a negative imagination, he should experience the previous emotion as fully as possible, and then try to reduce its level and realize through what new attitudes he managed to achieve this. Such immersion in a traumatic situation is repeated many times. The training can be considered effectively completed if the client has reduced the intensity of the experienced emotions with the help of several options for settings. With positive imagination, the client immediately presents a problem situation with a positively colored emotion.

Reconstruction with the help of direct action is a confirmation of the success of the modifications of attitudes carried out at the cognitive level and in the imagination. Direct actions are implemented according to the type of flooding techniques, paradoxical intention, modeling techniques.

The fourth stage is consolidation with the help of homework performed by the client independently. They can also be carried out at the cognitive level, in the imagination or at the level of direct actions.

RET is primarily shown to clients who are capable of introspection, reflection, and analysis of their thoughts.
correction goals. The main goal is to assist in the revision of the system of beliefs, norms and ideas. The private goal is liberation from the idea of ​​self-accusation.

In addition, A. Ellis formulated a number of desirable qualities, the achievement of which by the client can be a specific goal of psycho-correctional work: social interest, self-interest, self-government, tolerance, flexibility, acceptance of uncertainty, scientific thinking, self-acceptance, ability to take risks, realism.

position of the psychologist. The position of a psychologist working in line with this concept is, of course, directive. He explains, convinces. He is an authority that refutes erroneous judgments, pointing out their inaccuracy, arbitrariness, etc. He appeals to science, to the ability to think and, in the words of Ellis, does not engage in absolution, after which the client may feel better, but it is not known whether it is actually easier for him.

Requirements and expectations from the client. The client is assigned the role of a student, and accordingly his success is interpreted depending on motivation and identification with the role of a student.
The client is expected to go through three levels of insight:
1. Superficial - awareness of the problem.
2. Deep - recognition of one's own interpretations.
3. Deep - at the level of motivation for change.
In general, the psychological prerequisites for RET are as follows:
recognition of the client's personal responsibility for their problems;
acceptance of the idea that there is an opportunity to decisively influence these problems
recognition that the client's emotional problems stem from his irrational ideas about himself and the world;
discovery (comprehension) by the client of these representations;
recognition by the client of the usefulness of a serious discussion of these views;
consent to make efforts to confront their illogical judgments;
consent of the client to the use of RET.

Techniques
RET is characterized by a wide range of psychotechniques, including those borrowed from other areas.

1. Discussion and refutation of irrational views.
The psychologist actively discusses with the client, refutes his irrational views, requires proof, clarifies the logical grounds, etc. Much attention is paid to softening the categoricalness of the client: instead of "I must" - "I would like";
instead of "It will be terrible if ..." - "Probably it will not be very convenient if ..."; instead of "I am obliged to do this work" - "I would like to do this work at a high level."
2. Cognitive homework is associated with introspection according to the "ABC-model" and the restructuring of habitual verbal reactions and interpretations.
3. Rational-emotive imagination. The client is asked to imagine a difficult situation for him and his feelings in it. Then it is proposed to change the self-feelings in the situation and see what changes in behavior this will cause.
4. Role play. Disturbing situations are played out, inadequate interpretations are worked out, especially those that carry self-accusation and self-abasement.
5. "Attack on fear." The technique consists of a homework task, the meaning of which is to perform an action that usually causes fear or psychological difficulties in the client. For example, a client who experiences severe discomfort when communicating with a seller is offered to go to a large store with many departments and in each department to ask to show him some thing.

Rational-emotional therapy (RET) by A. Ellis

Continuing the speech about cognitive psychology and psychotherapy, it should also be noted the developments of its other representative - Albert Ellis. Like Beck, Ellis attached great importance to the human cognitive sphere, which was completely ignored by the behavioral approach to therapy that was popular at the time.

In 1955, Albert Ellis proposed a new type of therapy, which he called rational therapy. He wanted to emphasize that our psychological problems are based not so much on specific events as on our irrational attitudes, irrational beliefs that prevent us from accepting life as it is. In 1961, having improved and supplemented his therapy, Ellis gave it a new name - rational-emotional therapy, RET for short. Under this name, it is used to this day, although Ellis himself in 1993 renamed it again to rational-emotional behavioral therapy, or REPT, thus emphasizing the importance of attention to the real behavior of the client, which allows it to be attributed to both behavioral and cognitive psychotherapy. The new name has not taken root, and despite the fact that the latest version of therapy is currently being used in the work, it is called by its former name - RET.

If behavioral therapy seeks to change behavior by transforming external conditions, then RET sees its task in changing emotions, and then behavior, through the transformation of thoughts. The essence of the RET concept can be reflected in the scheme: A-B-C, where A - activation event - exciting (activating) event; B - belief system - belief system; C - emotional consequence - emotional consequences. It seems that emotion immediately follows the activating event, but Ellis believed that between them there are necessarily thoughts and beliefs of a person. Anxiety and other negative emotions are triggered by irrational cognitions. Ellis believed that such irrational thoughts and beliefs needed to be considered and exposed by rational thought. This will help to overcome them and the negative feelings provoked by them.

Ellis distinguished two types of cognition: descriptive and evaluative. Descriptive (or describing) - represent relatively objective information about reality, evaluative - express a person's attitude to the perceived. The latter are connected by varying degrees of rigidity: evaluative cognitions are close to reality and very far from it. Ellis called the latter irrational judgments, which include such errors as incorrect conclusions, absolutization, exaggeration, simplification, etc.

One of the goals of Ellis therapy is to separate the negative feelings, emotions and beliefs that are periodically present in any person into rational and irrational. In other words, there are events that, in their essence, should cause sadness, sadness, some dissatisfaction, this is a normal reaction of a healthy person. But sometimes experiences arise on the basis of irrational beliefs, for example, when a person suffers because, having set himself unrealistic goals, he cannot achieve them, or because he cannot accept reality as it is, is tormented by the fact that nothing impossible to change. Feelings with such a basis do not help solve problems. It should be noted that Ellis did not use the concept of "irrational" in the sense of pathology. He called rational that which helps a person to achieve the goals that he really needs, and irrational - everything that prevents this, and it is precisely certain beliefs - “cognitions” that interfere.

Ellis primarily referred absolutist cognitions to irrational beliefs. These are various duties - categorical and inflexible, when a person perceives the world through the concepts of "should", "necessary". For some, this “must-should not” extends to themselves and their immediate circle of communication, for others - to a distant circle, for others - it generally reaches an existential level, that everything in the world is not like that and should be different. Ellis believed that the most important moment in gaining mental health is the rejection of absolutization - “should” must be replaced with “should”, “would be good”, “would like”. That is, to soften the rigidity of the requirements for oneself, others, the surrounding reality, which drive a person into intolerance of internal discomfort and create the same unbearable discomfort for others. Instead of being pleasant, a person sticks out his hard corners in all directions and then is surprised that no one is approaching him. This is because these corners can be cut off and hit.

Irrational ideas lead to negative emotions (depression, anxiety, anger, guilt) that seriously impede the achievement of goals. They underlie dysfunctional behaviors such as decision avoidance, procrastination, alcoholism, and so on. At the same time, cognitions create programs of self-fulfilling prophecies as a result of constant exercise and reinforcement, that is, a vicious circle arises - a negative judgment causes a negative emotion, and that confirms a negative judgment, such as "everything is bad."

Ellis paid much attention to the first (setting) acquaintance of the psychotherapist with the patient.

Here is an approximate instruction of a RET psychotherapist:

“The therapy that we are starting is aimed at teaching you how to manage your emotions and get rid of negative experiences. In the early stages of the work, you will be given the opportunity to understand the ways in which you have created your negative feelings. You can also change these ways and thereby experience other, positive emotions. All this will require you to be active in work both here and at home, since therapy involves doing homework, listening to audio recordings, reading special literature. I am not a magician and a wizard who will instantly save you from problems. I can be a guide that will help you get on the road to your desired goal ”(Fedorov A.P., 2002).

It must be said that Ellis did not share the opinion of representatives of Rogerian humanistic therapy about the decisive role of empathic support without the active intervention of the therapist. Ellis agreed that the client should be accepted as he is, but believed that this, however, should not exclude the appropriate activity of the psychotherapist, who can, if necessary, criticize the patient, expose his erroneous judgments. Ellis believed that uncritical, benevolent acceptance of the patient perpetuates his problems, as is often the case in the family. And he especially actively recommended attacking the self-tyranny of duty, when the patient drives himself into stress and anxiety by excessive demands on himself and those around him.

Based on extensive practical experience, Ellis differentiated approaches to different types of patients. Thus, he recommends avoiding an overly friendly, emotionally charged style of interaction with "hysterical" patients; overly intellectual style with "obsessive-compulsive" patients; overly directive style with people whose sense of autonomy is easily shaken; overly active style with patients who fall too quickly into passivity.

Consider the stages of emotional-rational therapy.

The first step is to discover and verbalize (clearly verbalize) irrational beliefs. At the same time, special attention is paid to absolutist cognitions, which are manifested in the patient's use of the words "should", "should", "necessary". This so-called tyranny of duty becomes the main object of therapeutic work. The therapist must show the client how this belief system weighs on him.

Once the core irrational beliefs are clarified, work begins on restructuring these cognitions at three levels: cognitive, emotional, and behavioral.

At the cognitive level, the main task of the therapist is to force the patient to give up perfectionism (exaggerated demands for perfection), showing him that this alone will make his life simpler and more joyful.

Socratic dialogue and cognitive debate are used here (a gradual bringing of the client's beliefs to the discovery of their incorrectness and harmfulness).

To influence on emotional damage, the drama of preferences and shoulds is played out to distinguish between these two phenomena - “it would be better” and “should” with the help of role-playing games. Persuasion is carried out at the level of emotions.

To enhance the emotional background, the therapist can, for example, invite members of the therapeutic group to tell one of its participants what they think about him, or encourage participants to admit their shortcomings, “shameful” feelings (envy, hostility, etc.). To do this, patients will have to show courage and make an effort on themselves, but as a result they will see that the group does not condemn them, accepts them as they are, and participants can experience a sense of mutual trust and closeness. To enhance this effect, Ellis used techniques that bring sensual pleasure: a friendly hug, stroking, the expression of kind words that patients had not dared to do before.

At the behavioral level, work is aimed not only at eliminating symptoms, but also at changing cognitions. For example, the tendency to perfectionism can be reduced by doing the following tasks for the therapist:

• ? overcome shyness and make an appointment;
• ? deliberately fail when speaking to the public (therapeutic group);
• ? imagine yourself enduring the situation of failure;
• ? imagine yourself in difficult circumstances and accept them;
• ? allow yourself to enjoy activities only after completing an unpleasant but necessary task;
• ? start doing things right away, without putting it off for later, while enduring the discomfort of fighting the habit;
• ? take on an unpleasant task for the sake of delayed goals;
• ? from time to time to behave as an already rationally thinking person (so that the patient can understand that changes are possible).

Albert Ellis sought to bring emotional and rational perception to the same level, that is, to show a person his true needs, and not those real, patient, false or unreal, overstated or understated needs. The work of the psychotherapist should consist largely in revising the goals and desires of the client, assessing them - is this really what he needs, or does it just seem to him that maybe these are far-fetched, and not true needs, and it is they who take away energy from achieving what is truly truly needed?

Ellis believed that for psychological well-being, a person needs to have important life goals and actively strive to achieve them. Therefore, one of the tasks of the therapist in cognitive counseling is to analyze what goals his client sets and what he does to achieve them. After all, goals can be the most “rational”, but at the same time a person does not really do anything to achieve them, he only thinks about it, but postpones everything for later. So, for example, a person decided to find a job, but every day he finds reasons to postpone the search, being distracted by all sorts of other unrelated things. Start, act, and along the way, something will be added that will strengthen your position! Because delayed actions, if we recognize their necessity, give rise to neuroses, and those in turn are aggravated by further inaction. Therefore, if a person really understands that it is necessary to act, he must begin to act without fear of failure. There is a very good proverb: "Not every action brings success, but there is no success without action." We must understand that not every step promises us success, but if we do nothing at all, then there will be no success. This is a very therapeutic proverb and can be used as an objection to a client's resistance. "Well, I acted, acted - and nothing happened." And you immediately remember: "Not every action brings success, but there is no success without action." Even if you did not achieve victory this time, but without making an attempt, there would be no chance of achieving it at all.

It is very important that the goals are adequate, not overestimated, otherwise you will never achieve them, but you will only be disappointed and will always be in frustration, nervous tension, and not underestimated, as they will not allow a person to realize personal growth, reveal their potential, which will also make a person unhappy. Abraham Maslow said: "I warn you that if you refuse to realize your abilities, you will be a deeply unhappy person." Like everything in nature - any blade of grass, any animal - so a person is programmed for maximum self-realization, and when, not due to some circumstances, but independently, a person moves away from development into passivity, laziness or some false goals, then this eventually causes frustration, dissatisfaction, tension and emotional, and sometimes even somatic disturbances.

Since a person lives in society, sometimes the achievement of his personal goals may not be consistent with the goals and desires of other people, which leads to conflicts both with others and with himself. He often has to solve a dilemma: to give up his desires or to act against the desires of others. This moment is also the subject of the work of a counseling psychologist or therapist, who must see where the client's desires and aspirations conflict with the desires and aspirations of other people, and help him find a reasonable compromise. If a person “pulls the blanket over himself” all the time, his relationships with other people will deteriorate, become fragile and insincere, and if, on the contrary, he constantly gives in to others, then his own desires will suffer and his self-realization will not occur, from which the person will also will feel miserable. This means that it is necessary to be diplomatic and show that “I am ready to give in, but I am counting on certain concessions from you, let's try to be more mutually compliant!”. In many cases, the psychologist will find that there are no real contradictions as such, there is simply a different assessment of conflicting events, which is based on different psychological attitudes. And it may turn out that in order to resolve the conflict, it will be enough to look at the situation differently, and then it will become clear that the satisfaction of your desire will actually not hurt anyone. To do this, it is necessary to investigate what beliefs underlie actions - rational, allowing to achieve the goal or irrational, preventing this.

Ellis's approach can also be called hedonistic. We know that there is such a direction in philosophy - hedonism. Its ancestor was Aristippus, who lived in ancient Greece. According to this current, the purpose of human life lies in obtaining pleasure. And, apparently, nature itself has laid in a person certain indicators of what he should strive for. The bad, as a rule, is unpleasant, painful; and the good brings pleasure. And one should be less led by social prejudices and trust the voice of nature more, because she could not make good and pleasant sinful and bad. It must be said that Ellis put a slightly different meaning into this term, hedonism. He spoke of the so-called delayed hedonism. What it is? Ellis believed that a person should have certain delayed pleasures, for which he is now ready to endure some discomfort. For example, you understand that you will enjoy receiving a diploma and further good employment. But for this, now it is necessary to engage in and sometimes do certain work, pass tests and exams, which are now right across your throat. Knowing that your real efforts will eventually pay off helps you force yourself to study hard (to bore yourself with some activity). An athlete trains, tortures himself, in order to win later and receive awards and glory, because he understands that without effort he will not achieve what he wants.

Many neurotic personalities do not know how to live with delayed hedonism. They prefer instant hedonism and follow the principle “if I can’t get something right away, then I won’t try,” that is, they cannot set themselves up for the fact that effort now will lead to success in the future. This is one of the most important tasks in raising children - to teach them from childhood to work for delayed pleasure: if you finish a quarter well, you will get a bicycle, etc. Children must learn to force themselves to endure hardships, and not just for the sake of it, but for the sake of receiving pleasures in the future. Friedrich Engels said: "Man must live the joys of tomorrow." A person should have as many different delayed joys as possible, associated, for example, with a pleasant meeting, achievement, success or some other pleasure in the future, the expectation of which brightens our life today.

Ellis identified several criteria for psychological health:

• ? observance of own interests;
• ? social interest;
• ? self-management, readiness for reasonable cooperation;
• ? high tolerance to states of frustration;
• ? flexibility, non-regularity in relation to oneself and others;
• ? acceptance of uncertainty;
• ? devotion to creative pursuits;
• ? scientific thinking;
• ? self acceptance;
• ? riskiness;
• ? delayed hedonism.

Let's try to unravel these concepts.

Ellis believed that one of the signs of a person's mental norm is his healthy selfishness. What did he mean by this term? First of all, that a person should not forget about his interests. Complete subordination of oneself to other people's desires Ellis considered an unhealthy phenomenon, as well as the reverse situation. That is, it should be a reasonable consideration of one's own and others' interests, but with the priority of one's own.

In this regard, the position of the so-called altars is unhealthy and forms the unhealthiness of others, in the role of which parents often act, sacrificing themselves and their interests to the interests of children. It seems to them that by doing this they are doing better for their children, but in reality they spoil them, make them unable to achieve their goals on their own.

Sometimes this happens to mothers, and more often to single mothers who for the sake of their child refuse any pleasure. And what example do such parents set for their children? If a mother really wants the best for her, for example, her daughter, then instead of depriving herself of everything, she should show her that, despite the difficulty of the situation, a woman copes, does not lose heart, takes care of herself, she is attractive to men, and is able to rejoice and think about your own interests. The daughter should see before her an example of what one should be. Otherwise, she will grow up selfish or as “flawed” as her mother, believing from childhood that to love another means to completely abandon her own desires. That is, healthy egoism is a necessary condition for the well-being of not only the person himself, but also his loved ones, for whom he is ready to sacrifice himself.

The ability to observe one's own interests is complemented by another important characteristic of the norm - the ability to take into account and social interest. That is, the fact that a person lives a complete egoist, thinking only about his needs, Ellis recognized as abnormal. He believed that healthy views are expressed in the ability to take into account not only one's own interest, but to be attentive to other people's needs, and also to be capable of cooperation and cooperation.

The next standard criterion is self management. This, on the one hand, is the readiness to independently solve one's problems, without shifting them onto the shoulders of others and bearing responsibility for the results obtained, and on the other hand, the ability to accept help if necessary, enter into cooperation and cooperation. Here it is important to emphasize the fact that a person, always relying primarily on himself, does not refuse reasonable assistance and is himself capable of being useful on occasion, this is a manifestation of healthy beliefs.

Another characteristic of the norm sounds like high1 sai tolerance for frustration. Recall that tolerance means tolerance, the ability to endure, and frustration is defined as a strong emotional dissatisfaction. The essence of the characteristic lies in the fact that a person with healthy cognitions is able to experience and overcome life's difficulties without slipping into a deep depression. Life is impossible without setbacks, troubles and difficulties, and it is natural to feel upset when they happen, but this should not unsettle a person, make them abandon things and give up. And it is precisely the presence of tolerance for frustration that helps a person to resist the ongoing troubles.

Psychological health is also determined by the ability to exercise flexibility, nonrigidity(rigidity, as you know, is a lack of flexibility) towards oneself and others. Flexibility can be described as the ability of a person to change their thoughts and actions, if necessary, in accordance with new circumstances, thus adapting to a constantly changing environment. The world does not stand still, and in order to be successful, a person must change with it. But here it is mainly about the flexibility of cognitions. Each person has his own principles, these are quite stable human beliefs that create a system of views on the world. Some of them should remain unchanged, but some should change from time to time. Excessive rigidity of beliefs can hinder the development of a person and prevent his normal functioning in general. The most important point of Ellis's rational-emotional therapy is the definition of rigidly fixed beliefs, which, due to their rigidity, give the patient a lot of trouble. It happens like this: a person, following his principles, not wanting to change them, complicates life for himself and others, rests on various points that turn out to be insignificant in rational therapy, and it also turns out that you can look at these things differently. For example, I may not like the behavior of some person, and not because it is objectively bad, but because I personally do not like it, but I take it and give it objectivity. I begin to believe that this is not my subjectivity, but an important principle that must be observed. This, of course, will begin to prevent me from communicating normally with others, and even with myself.

Now consider the characteristic acceptance of uncertainty. We know that exact definitions exist only in the abstract science of mathematics. In life, some element of uncertainty, tolerance is always allowed. Even gold is not one hundred percent - it is there 99 with something, of the highest standard. Therefore, nothing in life happens one hundred percent, but not for neurotics - they are not tolerant of uncertainty, everything should be like this, only like that, and nothing else! People with such beliefs drive themselves into the framework of their ideas. And since others cannot be driven there, they worry that they are not understood, they are not loved, everything is done to spite them. And so they feel very unhappy. Therefore, the acceptance of the fact that there is some uncertainty in everything, the recognition that not everything and not always happens as we would like, is important to reduce internal stress.

The next standard criterion is dedication to creativity- determines the presence of creativity in human life. It appears in the desire to learn and try something new, to be interested in various things, art or science, to have hobbies, hobbies, and not out of necessity, but out of a person’s inner need. That is, this is the desire to enrich and saturate one's life, and not reduce it to the automatism of everyday affairs.

Scientific thinking. What does scientific thinking mean? George Kelly said that every person in his life acts like a scientist, but only at the everyday level. What does a scientist do? Puts forward a hypothesis, conducts an experiment, obtains results that confirm or refute the main provisions. If the hypothesis is not confirmed, then the scientist revises it and tries to do something differently. In fact, this is what happens in our lives. Before we do something, we first assume what will come of it, we expect to get some result. And then we perform an action, an experiment and check - did it work out what I expected, or not? If the hypothesis is not confirmed, then it is necessary to think about what to do next, what should be changed in the initial positions. What happens to the neurotic personality? The hypothesis does not change, although it has not been repeatedly confirmed and is not confirmed further, bringing a person great discomfort and torment. But, despite this, the neurotic cannot change the hypothesis, his attitude towards himself, or people, or a certain business, and so on, because he cannot understand that the problem lies precisely in itself, that it needs to be corrected, since the results of actions are deplorable. Therefore, one of the therapist's tasks is to analyze the client's hypotheses for their rationality.

Self acceptance. This is the ability to accept yourself as you are, with all the pluses and minuses. We do not always perceive ourselves adequately; some of our abilities we overestimate, and some we underestimate. When a person inadequately evaluates himself, he can be upset all the time, because others evaluate him differently than he does himself, and a person can always think: “They don’t understand me.” Or he thinks: “I don’t present myself like that,” and, fearing to be unsuccessful, he begins to do something completely uncharacteristic of him. This is mistake. Because a natural person is always perceived better than a made one, because no one likes falsehood. And it always seems to us that we need to pretend to be something, then I will look better, then they will perceive me better. This is illusion and torment. Yesenin wrote: “Happiness is the dexterity of the mind and hands. All awkward souls are always known for the unprivate, but you don’t understand how much torment broken deceitful gestures bring. When a person begins to play a role that is not his own, even a seemingly beautiful one, he experiences discomfort, because the chosen role does not really agree with his inner world. And so a person may be worried that others will notice this discrepancy. That is, the most effective will be to accept yourself as you are, and then the person will not have to build something out of himself. Don't be afraid of the word "lack". Or designate it as reserves, that is, where it seems to you that you have a gap in something, think: "I have a reserve for improvement."

Riskiness. This is the ability to take reasonable risks in certain situations. The English have a proverb: "Nothing venture nothing have", which translates as: "To risk nothing - to have nothing." It perfectly characterizes this criterion of psychological health. Expressing the essence - risking, you can achieve success. Here it is important to understand that in life it is impossible to remain passive, it requires movement, action, and sometimes risk. Sometimes, in order to achieve development, it is necessary to take risks: change jobs or places of residence, start a family, etc. Otherwise, human life will turn into a stagnant swamp, stagnation. It is necessary not to be afraid of the new - ideas, acquaintances, activities, circumstances, etc. Risk is necessary to move forward. Our life is a risk.

And the last criterion of the norm - delayed hedonism. We discussed it in detail above, describing the features of Ellis's approach. The essence of this phenomenon lies in the ability to live with deferred joy, to consciously endure difficulties in the name of achieving success in the future.

So, we have considered all the criteria for a psychological norm, now I would like you to work on the following points.

Take another look at the listed mental health criteria, analyze how each of them is expressed in you, and also rate it on a 10-point scale (10 is the most pronounced, respectively, 1 is the least pronounced). At the same time, I suggest that you do not follow your first feeling when grading, but think carefully (remember examples from your own life), but it is better to ask a person who knows you how much this score really corresponds to the expression of one or another criterion of the norm.

Self-knowledge is the most interesting and fascinating process that has no limits of improvement. Therefore, try to evaluate your reserves for growth, use the word "reserves" rather than "shortcomings." Because it is better to focus on reserves than on shortcomings, because the more resources you discover, the more it will inspire you. Moreover, you will see that many parameters are interconnected with each other. And if you want to develop one of them, the others will automatically develop as well. When you or your client justify your assessments, try to understand what beliefs you (or he) are guided by and whether these beliefs are rational, i.e. really helping him to realize himself, or they are still irrational.

Summarizing the tasks and essence of the RET procedure, we can say that in order to achieve a change in worldview, patients are recommended to:

• 1. To understand that their psychological problems arose not so much because of external conditions and events, but from their attitude towards them.
• 2. Believe that they are able to solve their own problems.
• 3. Realize that their problems are provoked mainly by irrational absolutist beliefs.
• 4. Understand your irrational cognitions and make sure that their problems can be looked at rationally.
• 5. Expose your irrational views with the help of logic and common sense, as well as experimentally acting contrary to them.
• 6. By repeated repetitions with the help of cognitive, emotional and behavioral methods, bring new, rational beliefs to their full internal acceptance.
• 7. Constantly continue the process of positive restructuring of beliefs, replacing irrational cognitions with rational ones.

Workshop

• 1. Try to find irrational beliefs in yourself (or your client) and justify why you think they are.
• 2. Expose them with logic and common sense (you can use humor).
• 3. Formulate alternative rational cognitions on the identified problems.
• 4. Analyze your beliefs (or your client's) in terms of Ellis' mental health criteria, how you are implementing them, what reserves you have and how you are going to replenish them.

Questions for self-examination

• 1. Why did Ellis call his rational-emotional therapy this way?
• 2. Decipher the schema A-B-C.
• 3. What is the difference between rational and irrational cognitions?
• 4. What are absolutist cognitions and why are they harmful?
• 5. Describe the main stages of RET.
• 6. List the criteria for psychological health according to Ellis.
• 7. What is delayed hedonism?

Psychotherapy is understood as treatment, where the main “drug” is the word of the doctor. Communicating with the patient, he inevitably affects him psychologically and, helping to change his attitude towards himself and the world around him, contributes to recovery. The main methods of such influence include rational psychotherapy. It can be combined with occupational therapy, etc.

Rational therapy in psychology

It aims to influence the patient with logically reasoned explanations. That is, the doctor explains to the patient what is difficult for him to understand and accept. Having received clear and simple arguments, the patient renounces his false beliefs, overcomes pessimistic ideas and gradually moves towards recovery. Rational therapy uses a variety of techniques:

• indirect suggestion;
• emotional impact;
• didactic methods.

Frequent practice implies a dialogue between the doctor and the patient, while much will depend on the personality of the specialist, his ability to convince and listen, gain confidence and be sincerely interested in the fate of the patient. Such treatment has several directions, and some of its provisions and techniques are consistent with the method of neurolinguistic programming.

Rational-emotional psychotherapy

This direction was proposed in 1955 by Albert Ellis. He believed that the causes of mental disorders are irrational - erroneous cognitive attitudes. The main types of psychological problems include:

1. Self-abasement and self-treatment.
2. Exaggeration of the negative components of the situation.

Rational psychotherapy techniques help patients to accept themselves and increase their tolerance for frustration. In this case, the doctor acts according to the following scheme:

1. Explains and explains. Interprets the essence of the disease, which helps the patient to get a clear and clear picture of the disease and more actively control it.
2. Convinces. It corrects not only the cognitive, but also the emotional aspect, modifies the patient's personal attitudes.
3. Reorients. Changes in the patient's attitudes become stable, the value system in relation to the disease changes, and he goes beyond it.
4. Educates. Creates positive prospects for the patient after overcoming the disease.

Rational Cognitive Psychotherapy

The previous direction is one of its main branches. Their theoretical positions and techniques used are close, but the methods of rational psychotherapy, where the emphasis is on emotions, are more structured, and work with the patient is consistent. Cognitive techniques include:

• Socratic dialogue;
• the art of "filling the void";
• decatastrophization;
• method of similarities and similarities;
• reattribution;
• reformulation;
• decentralization.

At the same time, in his work, the doctor uses role-playing games, exposure treatment, the technique of diverting attention and planning activities. All this helps the patient to recognize the erroneous nature of his thinking, take responsibility for his actions and get rid of mental problems. At the same time, it is necessary that the doctor had an idea of ​​the achievements of logic and owned the modern theory of argumentation.

Rational-emotive psychotherapy

It is based on assumptions about human nature and the origin of people's misfortunes or emotional disturbances. All kinds of false ideas, such as the inability to control external circumstances or the desire to always and in everything be the first, are common in society. They are accepted and reinforced by self-hypnosis, which can provoke neurosis, because they cannot be implemented. But regardless of the influence of external factors, people can act independently and the recognition of this ability formed the basis of the theory of behavior and personality disorders A-B-C.

Rational and explanatory psychotherapy proves that if you think rationally and rationally, then the consequences will be the same, and if the belief system is insane and unrealistic, then the consequences will be destructive. By recognizing this relationship, one can change such attitudes, actions and behaviors in response to external circumstances and situations.

American psychologist and cognitive therapist, author of rational-emotional behavioral therapy, an approach in psychotherapy that considers negative emotions and dysfunctional behavioral reactions as appearing not as a result of experience in itself, but as a result of the interpretation of this experience, that is, as a result of incorrect cognitive attitudes - irrational beliefs. He was also known as a sexologist and one of the ideologists of the sexual revolution.

Created and was President of the Albert Ellis Institute - The Albert Ellis Institute.

In 1982 he was recognized as the second most influential psychotherapist in the world, after Carl Rogers (the third named Sigmund Freud); in 1993 - the first (Ellis, Rogers, Beck). Deservedly shares with A. Beck the laurels of the pioneers of the cognitive approach.

Biography

Albert Ellis grew up as the eldest child in a Jewish family in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where his parents emigrated from Russia in 1910. Parents moved to New York and divorced when the boy was 12 years old. All further life of Ellis is connected with this city. He graduated from City University (Bachelor of Business) and after graduating tried business and writing for a while, but soon became interested in psychology. At the end of the 30s. he enrolled in clinical psychology at Columbia University (MA in 1943), defended his thesis (Ph.D., 1946), and received additional psychoanalytic training at the Karen Horney Institute. Ellis was greatly influenced by Karen Horney, as well as Alfred Adler, Erich Fromm, and Harry Sullivan, but by the mid-1950s he had become disillusioned with psychoanalysis and began developing his own approach. In 1955, this approach was called rational therapy.

Ellis founded and until recently headed the Albert Ellis Institute in New York, until the organization's board removed him from his position. Albert Ellis, despite being completely deaf, continued his active work independently. On January 30, 2006, a New York court ruled that it was illegal to remove him from office.

Scientific and practical activities

Albert Ellis devoted most of his life to psychotherapeutic practice and counseling: first non-professional, then as a psychoanalyst. Later, he becomes disillusioned with psychoanalysis and publishes the article "Telepathy and psychoanalysis: a critique of recent findings", containing criticisms of anti-scientific mysticism and the occult in the psychological literature.

In the 1950s and 60s, Ellis created the foundations of rational-emotional behavioral therapy (REBT) and its central model for the occurrence of emotional disorders - the ABC Model. Throughout the rest of his life, the scientist develops this new direction of psychotherapy, paying special attention to the experimental verification of the truth of the main provisions of the theory and the effectiveness of the therapeutic methods used.

Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT)

Rational Emotional Behavioral Therapy (REBT) (formerly "RT" and "RET") is a "theoretically consistent eclecticism" of various psychotherapeutic methods: cognitive, emotional and behavioral. A distinctive feature of REBT is the division of all emotions experienced by a person into rational (productive) and irrational (unproductive, destructive, dysfunctional), the cause of which is irrational beliefs (sometimes - "irrational beliefs", English "irrational beliefs").

Since Ellis began his career as a psychotherapist as a psychoanalyst, it is not surprising that his views were strongly influenced by the ideas of such psychoanalysts as Karen Horney and Alfred Adler. However, Ellis subsequently diverged from psychoanalysis, and as a result, according to the authors and supporters, REBT is a humanistic form of therapy, which results in one of the main therapeutic principles of REBT - unconditional acceptance ("unconditional positive attitude" in the terminology of K. Rogers) by the client's therapist as a person while maintaining a critical attitude towards his negative actions.

Moreover, in describing the relation of the REBT therapist to the client, Ellis puts the whole triad of Rogers in the first place. In addition, the list includes humor (only where it is appropriate; humor as an ironic and cheerful attitude to life, but not jokes about the personality, feelings, thoughts and actions of the client), informality (but not entertainment at psychotherapy sessions that are held outside the client's money), a cautious manifestation of immense warmth towards the client (excessive emotional empathy is also harmful). Ellis defined the role of the REBT therapist as an authoritative and inspiring teacher who tries to teach his clients how to be their own therapist after the formal sessions are over.

The validity of the main theoretical provisions and the therapeutic efficacy of REBT are confirmed by many experimental studies.

ABC model

The ABC (sometimes “A-B-C”) model of the occurrence of mental disorders states that dysfunctional emotions, denoted by the letter “C” (“consequences”, English consequences), do not arise under the influence of “activating events” (sometimes “activators” letter “A ”, English activating events), but under the influence of irrational beliefs (sometimes - “beliefs”, the letter “B”, English beliefs), formulated in the form of absolutist requirements or “shoulds”.

The key to positive changes in the model is the discovery, analysis and active challenge of irrational beliefs (corresponds to stage "D" in the extended model ABCDE - English disputation) with subsequent consolidation of the results ("E", English end result). To do this, clients are trained to notice and distinguish dysfunctional emotions and look for their cognitive causes.

Mental health and its criteria for REBT

A psychologically healthy person is characterized by the philosophy of relativism, "wishes";

Rational derivatives of this philosophy (rational, because they usually help people achieve their goals or form new ones if the old goals cannot be realized) are:

1. assessment - determining the unpleasantness of an event (instead of dramatization);
2. tolerance - I recognize that an unpleasant event has occurred, evaluate its unpleasantness and try to change it or, if it is impossible to change it, I accept the situation and implement other goals (instead of "I won't survive this");
3. acceptance - I accept that people are imperfect and do not have to behave differently than they do now, I accept that people are too complex and changeable to give them a global categorical assessment, and I accept living conditions as they are eat (instead of condemnation);

Thus, the main criteria for the psychological health of a person:

• Observance of own interests.
• social interest.
• Self management.
• High tolerance for frustration.
• Flexibility.
• Acceptance of uncertainty.
• Dedication to creative pursuits.
• Scientific thinking.
• Self acceptance.
• Riskiness.
• Delayed hedonism.
• Anti-utopianism.
• Responsibility for your emotional disorders.

Awards and prizes

• 1971 - Humanist of the Year award from the American Humanist Association
• 1985 - "outstanding professional contribution to applied research" award from the American Psychological Association.
• 1988 - "Professional Achievement Award" from the American Counseling Association.
• 1996 and 2005 Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies Awards.

Religious and philosophical views

Albert Ellis adhered to agnosticism in his religious beliefs, arguing that God "probably does not exist", but at the same time not denying the possibility of his existence. In the book "Sex Without Guilt", the scientist expressed the opinion that religious dogmas that impose restrictions on the expression of sexual experiences often adversely affect people's mental health.

The main philosophical views of Ellis fit into the framework of the concepts of humanism and stoicism. In his books and interviews, the scientist often quoted his favorite philosophers: Marcus Aurelius, Epictetus and others.

Literature in Russian

• Ellis A., Dryden W. The practice of rational-emotional behavioral therapy. - St. Petersburg: Speech, 2002. - 352 pages - ISBN 5-9268-0120-6
• Ellis A, McLaren K. Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy. - R&D: Phoenix, 2008. - 160 pages - ISBN 978-5-222-14121-2
• Ellis A. Humanistic psychotherapy: Rational-emotional approach. / Per. from English. - St. Petersburg: Owl; M.: EKSMO-Press, 2002. - 272 p. (Series "Steps of psychotherapy"). ISBN 5-04-010213-5
• Ellis A., Conway R. Who does a woman want? A practical guide to erotic seduction. - M.: Tsentrpoligraf, 2004. - 176 pages - ISBN 5-9524-1051-0
• Ellis A., Lange A. Don't put pressure on my psyche! - St. Petersburg: Peter Press, 1997. - 224 p. - (Series "Your own psychologist"). ISBN 5-88782-226-0
• Ellis A. Psychotraining according to the method of Albert Ellis. - St. Petersburg: Peter Kom, 1999. - 288 p. - (Series "Your own psychologist"). ISBN 5-314-00048-2
• Kassinov G. Rational-emotional-behavioral therapy as a method of treating emotional disorders // Psychotherapy: From theory to practice. Materials of the I Congress of the Russian Psychotherapeutic Association. - St. Petersburg: ed. Psychoneurological Institute. V. M. Bekhtereva, 1995. - S. 88-98.
• Where is the proof? Albert Ellis: a revolution in psychotherapy // "Common Sense" 2008, No. 1 (46)
• McMullin R. Workshop on Cognitive Therapy = The New Handbook on Cognitive Therapy Techniques. - St. Petersburg: Speech, 2001. - 560 p. - 5000 copies. - ISBN 5-9268-0036-6.