Albert Ellis' ABC Model in the Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Spotlight
Albert Ellis’s ABC Model is a major part of his rational-emotive behavior therapy (REBT). REBT served as a sort of precursor to cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), and the ABC Model is now a treatment commonly used in CBT interventions. This article will cover what the ABC Model is, how it and REBT relate to CBT, and finally the ways in which the ABC Model works to target dysfunctional thoughts and beliefs. A Brief History on CBT & REBT CBT has its direct roots in Aaron Beck’s cognitive therapy (CT), which he developed when he decided that contemporary treatments for depression focused too much on past events rather than current beliefs (such as the belief that one is not good enough for their job or partner) (Beck, 2011). Beck’s CT has its own roots, though, and Albert Ellis’s REBT is one of those roots. Specifically, REBT is “the original form and one of the main pillars of cognitive-behavioral therapies (CBT)”(David et al., 2018). REBT along with Aaron Beck’s cognitive th
