Table of Contents

Part 1 THE DISTINCTIVE THEORETICAL FEATURES OF REBT ; Terminology and theory; Post-modernism, relativism and other emphases: REBT’s distinctive theoretical heritage; REBT’s distinctive ABC model; Rigid and extreme attitudes are at the core of psychological disturbance ; Flexible and non-extreme attitudes are at the core of psychological health; Distinction between unhealthy negative emotions (UNEs) and healthy negative emotions (HNEs); REBT’s key principle of emotional responsibility; Explaining why clients’ inferences are highly distorted; Position on human worth; Distinction between ego and discomfort disturbance and health; Focus on meta-psychological disturbance; The biological basis of human disturbance; REBT’s position on the origin and maintenance of psychological problems; REBT’s position on psychological change; Position on good mental health; Part 2 THE DISTINCTIVE PRACTICAL FEATURES OF REBT; The therapeutic relationship in REBT; Position on case formulation; Psycho-educational emphasis; Dealing with problems in order: (i) disturbance; (ii) dissatisfaction; (iii) development; Early focus on rigid and extreme basic attitudes (R/EBs); Helping clients to change their rigid and extreme attitudes to flexible and non-extreme attitudes; Variety of therapeutic styles; REBT encourages clients to seek adversity when carrying out homework assignments, but does so sensibly; Change is hard work and the use of therapist force and energy; Emphasis on teaching clients general flexible and non-extreme attitudes and encouraging them to make a profound philosophic change; Compromises in therapeutic change; When to use a change-based focus (CBF) and when to use an acceptance-based focus (ABF); Focus on clients’ misconceptions, doubts, reservations and objections to REBT; Therapeutic efficiency; Theoretically consistent eclecticism; Appendix; References

About the Author

Windy Dryden is in part-time clinical and consultative practice and is an international authority on rational emotive behaviour therapy (REBT). He has worked in psychotherapy for more than 45 years and is the author and editor of over 240 books.