Maladaptive behaviours are the result of numerous causes which have been developed over the years. Historically, maladaptive behaviours were thought to emanate from demon possession while the problem is viewed as a medical issue in the modern world. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a term that refers to persistent and irrepressible images or thoughts that force one to take a particular action. Compulsion is the result of an obsession and it causes one to behave negatively and perform weird mental acts. According to Cox & D’Oyiey, 2011), these disorders may be innate and are usually a way of repressing something bad or preventing pain.
The serious medical conditions resulting from OCD cause financial burdens and makes it impossible for an individual to perform normally. OCD leads to the development of serious medical conditions including anorexia and schizophrenia among others. Cox & D’Oyiey (2011) and Covin, Ouimet, Seeds & Dozois, (2008) explain that OCD issues such as anorexia lead to body wasting away and in extreme circumstances death due to malnutrition. Schizophrenia makes it impossible for one to function normally. Management and treatment of maladaptive behaviour is quite costly in terms of the time and money, a reason why they need to be identified and prevented prior to their development. Cox and D’Oyiey
Over the years, behavioural treatments were used in the management of maladaptive behaviours. These were based on the ideology that there must have been a problem with learning for one to develop maladaptive behaviours. Classical, operant and social learning are some of the theories used in the development of approaches to deal with maladaptive behaviours. With time, CBT was introduced as the sole way of dealing with the issue.
One of the most effective treatments of OCD is CBT. CBT caters for all the needs of the patient and this ensures that the patient is completely healed. For instance, when it comes to treating a condition such as Anorexia, CBT begins by taxing the thought process. This is because most maladaptive behaviours stem from thoughts (Hoffman & Smits, 2008). This therapy then transforms that thought into something positive. For instance, if a patient is suffering from Anorexia, they are made to believe that food is good. By targeting the thought process CBT arrests the negative mental aspects brought about by OCD and in their place they plant something positive. The resulting effect is a situation that allows the patient to analyse reality and create positive thought.
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy
CBT is an approach that targets the behavioural change within an individual. The approach focuses on the perception, expectations and thoughts of a client. CBT explores the way a patient may react with the factors in their surrounding and their contribution to the creation of maladaptive behaviours (Cox & D’Oyiey, 2011). CBT deals with maladaptive behaviours from the point of thought processes and the aspects that uphold these ways. Schizophrenia, obsessive compulsive disorder and anorexia are part of the maladaptive behaviours that are treated using this method as they target the behaviour, the surroundings and their contribution to the symptoms. The overall objective of any form of therapeutic intervention is to reduce symptoms, remit disorder and to improve functioning. Apparently, there are both traditional and modern forms of CBT with the main difference between the two being that modern CBT is a combination of a variety of interventions (Hoffman & Smits, 2008; Powers & Emmelkamp, 2008). The contemporary form of CBT is a result of the realization that traditional CBT could not meet the goals of therapeutic interventions. CBT should be used in combination with other treatments especially when dealing with older people otherwise its effectiveness reduces.
My Understanding of CBT
Generalized anxiety disorders have a high prevalence especially in certain populations and they often result maladaptive behaviours which are a financial burden to the society. While there are numerous traditional methods of approaching these psychological conditions, their treatment still remains a topic that is debated among scientists, with many of them strongly supporting the use of CBT while other psychotherapists stick to the traditional ineffective interventions (Covin, Ouimet, Seeds & Dozois, 2008). Some of these interventions are particularly helpful in the elimination or management of the symptoms. Needless to say, CBT is known to be highly effective especially as evidenced by the ability of this technique to cover the underlying causes of anxiety. Considering that generalized anxiety disorders are a combination of numerous problems, psychologists advocate for a combination of behavioural, psychotherapeutic and other methods in treating the problem. The effectiveness of CBT is impacted by the way the therapist practices and the relationship they have with the patient (Hunsley, Katherine & Zoe, 2014). Psychotherapeutic approaches are usually dynamic mainly because therapy is viewed as a package with varied theoretical practices you can read about this in this essay on psychology.