Theoretical Foundations Flashcards
7 cards from real ACT practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Theoretical Foundations flashcards as text
ACT is classified as a 'third wave' behavioral therapy primarily because it:
Answer: Adds acceptance and mindfulness processes to the behavioral tradition
Third-wave therapies like ACT are distinguished by their incorporation of acceptance, mindfulness, values, and contextual processes alongside traditional behavior change strategies.
In the ACT model, 'self-as-content' (conceptualized self) becomes problematic when:
Answer: A client is fused with a fixed self-story that limits behavioral flexibility
Self-as-content becomes problematic when clients rigidly identify with their self-narrative (e.g., 'I am anxious'), constraining them to act in ways consistent with that story.
A client says, 'I know rationally my fear is irrational, but I still feel it.' From an ACT/RFT perspective, this illustrates:
Answer: The failure of insight-based cognitive restructuring to alter verbal stimulus functions
RFT explains that rational insight doesn't eliminate the emotional stimulus functions of verbal networks; defusion and acceptance are needed to reduce their behavioral impact.
The ACT process of 'committed action' is differentiated from behavioral activation (in CBT for depression) primarily by:
Answer: Explicit linkage of behaviors to personally chosen values
While behavioral activation targets mood improvement, committed action in ACT ties behavior change explicitly to identified personal values, giving it purpose beyond symptom relief.
RFT's concept of 'arbitrarily applicable relational responding' (AARR) is significant because it explains:
Answer: How humans relate stimuli based on contextual cues rather than physical properties
AARR is the human capacity to relate any stimuli to any other based on social-verbal context rather than physical similarity, which underlies all of language and symbolic thought.
According to ACT's functional contextual framework, the 'truth criterion' used to evaluate interventions is:
Answer: Workability: does it help the organism achieve its goals in context?
Functional contextualism uses workability as its truth criterion—an approach is 'true' or valid if it effectively helps the organism achieve valued outcomes in its context.
In ACT, 'values clarification' exercises are designed to help clients distinguish values from:
Answer: Rules, obligations, and experiential avoidance-based choices
Values clarification helps clients separate authentic chosen directions from rigid rules ('I should'), social pressures, or values adopted to avoid guilt and shame (avoidance-based).