Cognitive Distortions Worksheet

Cognitive Distortions Worksheet

Read Chapter 3in the course textbook.

Complete the table below using the information from the textbook.

Choose a total of 5cognitive distortions.

GCU style not required, solid academic writing is expected.

An example is provided below in red.

Selected Cognitive Distortion

Definition of Cognitive Distortion

Please respond to the prompts below (a,b,c,d) for each cognitive distortion you choose. Each response should be 150-200 words.
a) Provide an example of a cognitive distortion from your personal life.
b)How did the cognitive distortion affect your critical thinking?
c) How could you manage the emotions associated with this cognitive distortion in the future?
d) How will you avoid using this cognitive distortion in the persuasive essay you are writing for this class?
Always Being Right
It is impossible to be wrong.
a) My favorite baseball team is the best of all time, and no one could tell me otherwise. I did not do any research to support this claim, but I just know my favorite baseball team is the best.
b) I am so caught up in being right that I am unable to comprehend the actual statistics about other baseball teams. If someone tries to argue with me and provide information that could prove me wrong, I will dismiss it because I want to be right.
c) I should consider factual baseball statistics, and try to understand that my favorite team may not be the best simply because it is my favorite and I want to be right.
d) I will make sure to consider multiple points of view and factual information in addition to what I think I know and/or what I want to be the outcome. I will support my claims with relevant scholarly research from the GCU library showing that I have considered the possibility of other arguments.

Global labeling

One mistake represents complete failure

Having had passed my previous exams, failing the last sitting exam meant am a failure. This was due to the fact that I had passed all other exams and hence failing one was not a consideration.
Am used to passing all the exam sittings. Am taken up to thinking that those who fail even in a single paper are failures. Anybody who tries to argue otherwise proves to be on the wrong.
I should try to consider that am a normal person and making mistakes is part of life. I ought also to consider the fact that smooth life is an illusion.
I will support my personal arguments with proven facts. I will also consider the reality of life by accepting some levels of failures.

Emotional Reasoning

Feeling like a loser means you are one

My feeling was that I could not make to improve in my studies. I felt that I had already been a predetermined failure and could not afford to rise above my situation.
I have always related my feelings to be right. At times when I take myself as a failure, am not ready to move or take an improvement step.
I need to support what I feel with what the fact is. I also need to accept that failure may not always be associated to feelings but it is more than that.
I will ensure that am considering a wide range of facts before settling on a particular feeling. I need to consider more information beyond the feeling I have.

Shoulds

Everyone should party

Everyone should party at their youthful age. No one should pretend that he or she is not up to partying as it is part of life.
Am caught up by the aspect of thinking that all persons are the same and that they should take the same direction in their lives.
I should consider that people are different in their lives. I should also consider that the liking of one person may not necessarily represent the liking and interest of others.
I shall consider a wide range of facts that define what life is all about. I will also consider what others feel about what they ought to do or not do and support such with the facts from the GCU library on the interests of various people.

Blaming

My failure is contributed by those around me

My failing in the exams was contributed by the facilitator. I did not consider any other aspect but I just concluded on it as such. My previous success was contributed by the better teachers.
I was used to blame the teachers for the failure in my exams. If someone else tries to argue otherwise, he would be telling the lies as my stand is that success is contributed by teachers.
I should consider the facts relating to the determinants of success and failure. I should consider that success or failure is an aspect relating to various factors and not just one factor.
I will make sure to consider the various aspects of success and failure in relation to exams. I will also ensure that the facts I take to represent the success are well supported by various researchers.

Always being right

Being wrong has no possibility

My friends are always the top performers in our class. The fact that one is my friend states that he is a top performer in class. Anyone arguing otherwise proves to be telling lies.
Am caught up by the feeling that my friends are the best. Anyone who tries to argue against my stand is always wrong, and I will dismiss such a claim in order to remain right.
I need to consider the facts about performance. I need to appreciate that academic performance is not simply contributed to by friendship but other factors such as hard work.
I will consider taking to account various aspects of performance before believing in what I like. In this case, I will take in to account the various researches done by various scholars explaining what academic performance considers as the contributing factors.