CBT Cognitive Distortions & Thought Patterns 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What cognitive distortion involves drawing broad negative conclusions from a single event?
- Catastrophizing
- Mind reading
- Overgeneralization (Correct answer)
- Magnification
Correct answer: Overgeneralization
Overgeneralization occurs when a person draws sweeping conclusions about their life based on one isolated incident.
Question 2: Which cognitive distortion involves assuming you know what others are thinking without direct evidence?
- Fortune telling
- Personalization
- Mind reading (Correct answer)
- Labeling
Correct answer: Mind reading
Mind reading is the distortion where a person concludes what others are thinking, typically negatively, without actual evidence.
Question 3: 'Black-and-white thinking' is another common term for which cognitive distortion?
- Overgeneralization
- Mental filter
- Labeling
- Dichotomous thinking (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Dichotomous thinking
Dichotomous thinking, also called black-and-white or all-or-nothing thinking, involves seeing situations in only two extreme categories with no middle ground.
Question 4: When a client assigns a global negative label to themselves such as 'I'm a complete failure' based on one mistake, this is an example of:
- Labeling (Correct answer)
- Fortune telling
- Personalization
- Overgeneralization
Correct answer: Labeling
Labeling involves attaching a fixed, global negative identity label to oneself or others based on specific behaviors or events.
Question 5: Which cognitive distortion involves focusing exclusively on negative details while filtering out positive aspects of a situation?
- Magnification
- Personalization
- Mental filter (Correct answer)
- Emotional reasoning
Correct answer: Mental filter
The mental filter distortion causes a person to dwell exclusively on one negative detail so that their entire perception of reality becomes darkened.
Question 6: A client who believes 'If I make a single error at work, I will definitely lose my job' is primarily demonstrating which cognitive distortion?
- Mind reading
- Catastrophizing (Correct answer)
- Labeling
- Minimization
Correct answer: Catastrophizing
Catastrophizing involves predicting extreme negative outcomes and treating them as inevitable when there is no reasonable evidence to support such a conclusion.
Question 7: In CBT, 'emotional reasoning' as a cognitive distortion means assuming that:
- Emotions are irrelevant to therapeutic outcomes
- Logical analysis can control feelings
- Emotional responses are reliable guides to behavior
- Negative feelings reflect objective reality about oneself or the world (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Negative feelings reflect objective reality about oneself or the world
Emotional reasoning is the distortion where a person takes their emotions as proof of truth, concluding that because they feel something strongly, it must be factually accurate.
CBT Cognitive Distortions & Thought Patterns 1
What cognitive distortion involves drawing broad negative conclusions from a single event?