What are cognitive distortions?

[Posty McPostface]

I've been practicing CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) as an amateur in my spare time for a while now. I do have one question about the centerpiece of what defines a healthy individual according to CBT. Meaning, in simple terms, that the less cognitive distortions you have the better off you should be in terms of psychological wellbeing.

However, I'm having some trouble understanding what are 'cognitive distortions' in general. The Wikipedia entry describes cognitive distortions as,

Cognitive distortions are thoughts that cognitive therapists believe cause individuals to perceive reality inaccurately. These thinking patterns often are said to reinforce negative thoughts or emotions.[2] Cognitive distortions tend to interfere with the way a person perceives an event. Because the way a person feels intervenes with how they think, these distorted thoughts can feed negative emotions and lead an individual affected by cognitive distortions towards an overall negative outlook on the world and consequently a depressive or anxious mental state.

Maybe my question is philosophical; but, why do we have "cognitive distortions"? Are they just errors in the reasoning process of assessing a belief's truthfulness or validity with reality? I've read that people with psychiatric disorders experience a disproportionate amount of cognitive distortions compared to the general population.

Basically, I'm looking for the cause of these errors in thoughts or beliefs about the world that one can have.

Thank you.

 

[jim mcnamara]

I've read that people with psychiatric disorders experience a disproportionate amount of cognitive distortions compared to the general population.

Your observation is considered correct, but you must start giving citations. Please 'I read' does not count as a citation. We have this rule for really good and helpful reasons .

I will try to help by kind of creating a trivial example: sort of a pet peeve. Urban Studies sociologists call this example the 'broken window theory':
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broken_windows_theory

DO NOT overthink this example, please.

Let's say that I'm urban and do not like seeing dog poop in the park or on the sidewalk. I walk my dog and clean up after her. So.
I have choices today when I encounter my first unwanted poop pile:
1. give up and stop cleaning up after my own dog, after all nobody else cleans up.
2. ignore it, step over it and go on as always, it does me no good to dwell on it
3. clean it up and go on as always

I chose this because it is easy to see through the problem and the consequences of 1, 2 , and 3. #1 is the same kind of cognitive distortion cardiac patients have when they are given clear dietary guidelines and then they unilaterally decide to skip the advice completely. It has harmful aftereffects. #2 has lesser effect on you but does it help your self image? #3 is probably the best choice.

BTW: you can see which of these options shows the broken window theory?

It seems to me that the correct term for #1 is probably extreme cognitive dissonance - you know better and still choose an option contrary to your core beliefs. 'Cognitive dissonance' is a term you should read about as well.

Sometimes examples help, sometimes not. YMMV.
And since you knew better about citations before you posted this question - which action (1, 2, 3) is analogous to your choice?

 

[Posty McPostface]

Your observation is considered correct, but you must start giving citations. Please 'I read' does not count as a citation. We have this rule for really good and helpful reasons .

It's in David D. Burns M.D. , Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy. I can't find the page where I was recollecting from memory that I presented that fact in the book.

1. give up and stop cleaning up after my own dog, after all nobody else cleans up.
2. ignore it, step over it and go on as always, it does me no good to dwell on it
3. clean it up and go on as always

Typically, in the case of depression, you have a series of events that escalate in depression, starting from 3, then 2, then eventually 1. I understand that the majority of cases end up with 2 being their professed attitude and then if nothing changes or the condition further lapses then it transfers to 1.

BTW: you can see which of these options shows the broken window theory?

Yes, I am reading the following which answers your question from here.

In an anonymous urban environment, with few or no other people around, social norms and monitoring are not clearly known. Individuals thus look for signals within the environment as to the social norms in the setting and the risk of getting caught violating those norms; one of the signals is the area's general appearance.

Under the broken windows theory, an ordered and clean environment, one that is maintained, sends the signal that the area is monitored and that criminal behavior is not tolerated. Conversely, a disordered environment, one that is not maintained (broken windows, graffiti, excessive litter), sends the signal that the area is not monitored and that criminal behavior has little risk of detection.

The first paragraph is of interest to me. Namely, social norms are available or known immediately. Cognitive distortions have to be pointed out to be identified and mitigated via CBT. These signals are unknown to an individual entering depression for the most part, so I would assume. There are cases of traumatic events, such as the death of a loved one, that exclude the definition of depression from being applied according to the DSM; but, that is becoming a rarity due to the shrinking period of time allowed by the DSM, for traumatic events. Anyway, I don't know if I have been clear enough; but, my point seems to be that cognitive distortions can only be addressed when an individual already has them. Is that something you would agree with?

It seems to me that the correct term for #1 is probably extreme cognitive dissonance - you know better and still choose an option contrary to your core beliefs. 'Cognitive dissonance' is a term you should read about as well.

This leads to me ask then, why does depression seem to be a type of 'cascade of events within the brain' that seem to manifest rather rapidly? Could identifying the causes of said cognitive distortions via CBT become some sort of prophylactic care against depression? Has this been studied in any manner?

And since you knew better about citations before you posted this question - which action (1, 2, 3) is analogous to your choice?

Heh, *scratches head*, well I would have to say somewhere between 1 and 2; but, you guys sure make 3 seem like the right option!

 

[hilbert2]

Someone can have cognitive distortions of the type that was called "neurotic" in the past, which means that they perceive some real-world risk as disproportionately large, for example someone has difficulties leaving their home because they're too scared of traffic accidents or getting robbed on the street.

Another kind of distortion is what is called "psychotic", where someone is concerned about a thing that can't even happen in real life (for example, someone thinks they have a giant eel living inside their stomach, or that his next-door neighbors are actually aliens from Sirius).

Of course, all human perception has some kind of flaws and biases in it, so it's just a matter of degree that differentiates between normal and abnormal.

 

[Fervent Freyja]

Not everyone processes emotions the same, that can lead to distortions when you rely on emotions to make decisions and as the basis of your perception. However, always making decisions using reasoning and logic can lead to a big distortion in perception. This is my problem. I don't usually factor my or another's emotions into my perspective, which leads to a huge misunderstanding on my part when it somes to dealing with others... Trying to reason everything out (to do with people) also leads to distortions. I think using a balance of emotion and reason may give us the best perspective of our external social world.