cognitive therapy Cognitive therapy (CT) is a type of psychotherapy developed by American psychiatrist Aaron T. Beck. CT is one therapeutic approach within the larger group of cognitive behavioral therapies (CBT) and was first expounded by Beck in the 1960s. Co ...

, decatastrophizing or decatastrophization is a cognitive restructuring technique to treat cognitive distortions, such as magnification and catastrophizing, commonly seen in psychological disorders like

anxiety Anxiety is an emotion which is characterized by an unpleasant state of inner turmoil Turmoil may refer to: * ''Turmoil'' (1984 video game), a 1984 video game released by Bug-Byte * ''Turmoil'' (2016 video game), a 2016 indie oil tycoon video ...

and

psychosis Psychosis is a condition of the mind that results in difficulties determining what is real and what is not real. Symptoms may include delusions and hallucinations, among other features. Additional symptoms are incoherent speech and behavior ...

. The technique consists of confronting the worst-case scenario of a feared event or object, using mental imagery to examine whether the effects of the event or object have been overestimated (magnified or exaggerated) and where the patient's coping skills have been underestimated. The term was coined by

Albert Ellis Albert Ellis (September 27, 1913 – July 24, 2007) was an American psychologist and psychotherapist who founded rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT). He held MA and PhD degrees in clinical psychology from Columbia University, and was cert ...

, and various versions of the technique have been developed, most notably by Aaron T. Beck. Decatastrophizing is also called the "what if" technique,Cognitive-Behavioral Theories of Counseling: Traditional and Nontraditional. IL: Charles C. Thomas, 2004 because the worst-case scenario is confronted by asking: "What if the feared event or object happened, what would occur then?" The following is an example: :"I could make an absolute fool of myself if I say the wrong thing." :"What if you say the wrong thing, what would happen then?" :"He might think I'm weird." ...

References

{{reflist Cognitive therapy