Contents

Disclaimer

Oxford University Press makes no representation, express or implied, that the drug dosages in this book are correct. Readers must therefore always check the product information and clinical procedures with the most up to date published product information and data sheets provided by the manufacturers and the most recent codes of conduct and safety regulations. The authors and the publishers do not accept responsibility or legal liability for any errors in the text or for the misuse or misapplication of material in this work. Except where otherwise stated, drug dosages and recommendations are for the non-pregnant adult who is not breastfeeding.

Show Summary Details
Page of

Cognitive behaviour therapies for children and families 

Cognitive behaviour therapies for children and families
Chapter:
Cognitive behaviour therapies for children and families
Author(s):

Philip Graham

DOI:
10.1093/med/9780199696758.003.0234
Page of

PRINTED FROM OXFORD MEDICINE ONLINE (www.oxfordmedicine.com). © Oxford University Press, 2021. All Rights Reserved. Under the terms of the licence agreement, an individual user may print out a PDF of a single chapter of a title in Oxford Medicine Online for personal use (for details see Privacy Policy and Legal Notice).

date: 24 June 2021

Cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) is derived from both behavioural and cognitive theories. Using concepts such as operant conditioning and reinforcement, behavioural theories treat behaviour as explicable without recourse to description of mental activity. In contrast, mental activity is central to all concepts derived from cognitive psychology. Both sets of theories have been of value in explaining psychological disorders and, in the design of interventions they have proved an effective combination. Central to that part of cognitive theory that is relevant to CBT is the concept of ‘schemas’, first described in detail by Jean Piaget. A schema is a mental ‘structure for screening, coding, and evaluating impinging stimuli’. The origin of mental schemas lies in the pre-verbal phase when material is encoded in non-verbal images that, as the child's language develops, gradually become verbally labelled. They form part of a dynamic system interacting with an individual child's physiology, emotional functioning, and behaviour with their operation depending on the social context in which the child is living. There are similarities but also differences between schemas and related concepts in psychoanalysis, such as Freudian ‘complexes’ and Kleinian ‘positions’. Schemas can be seen as organized around anything in the child's world, especially objects, beliefs, or emotions. They develop from past experience. The processing of new information in relation to such schemas can usefully be seen as involving the evaluation of discrepancies between information that is received and information that is expected. If there is a discrepancy, (the information not corresponding with that expected), then during the coding process information may be distorted so that it no longer creates discomfort, or, more adaptively, it may be incorporated into a modified schema.

Access to the complete content on Oxford Medicine Online requires a subscription or purchase. Public users are able to search the site and view the abstracts for each book and chapter without a subscription.

Please subscribe or login to access full text content.

If you have purchased a print title that contains an access token, please see the token for information about how to register your code.

For questions on access or troubleshooting, please check our FAQs, and if you can't find the answer there, please contact us.