Recall from Week 3 that CBT and REBT are second-wave approaches (with behaviorism being the first wave of theoretical evolution from Freudian psychoanalysis). Although CBT and REBT utilize differing techniques, fundamentally they share the belief that progress toward treatment goals will involve changing thoughts and beliefs.

This week, you begin to explore the continuing evolution of CBT/REBT into what is considered the third wave. Third-wave cognitive behavioral approaches are concerned with mindfulness and seek to incorporate the mind-body connection into treatment. Like CBT/REBT, they are concerned with the effects of cognitive activity on well-being, but posit that you should acknowledge and accept your thoughts but not necessarily change them (though sometimes you may).

You will discover through your readings that there are multiple approaches within the third wave, including mindfulness, mindfulness-based stress reduction, acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), and dialectical behavior therapy, among others. There is debate even among prominent practitioners among the field as to whether mindfulness approaches are a distinct “wave” from CBT/REBT, or whether they are simply techniques that may be incorporated within CBT/REBT.

This week, you begin to explore the basic concept of mindfulness through a simple experiment called the Mindfulness Raisin Exercise. You also complete Part 1 of your Course Project.

Learning Objectives

Students will:

• Identify how mindfulness is applied within cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)
• Analyze mindfulness in common experiences
• Summarize the theoretical foundation and major techniques/interventions of cognitive behavioral therapy approaches*

*The Assignment related to this Learning Objective is introduced this week and submitted in Week 11.