Cognitive Distortions For Teens
Mind Reading: You assume you know what people thinking
without having evidence or proof of their thoughts. “He thinks I’m
an idiot.” “I’m not going to make the team”
Future-Telling: You predict the future – that things will get
worse or that there’s danger ahead. “If I go, people will make
fun of me.” “If I talk, I will mess up and not say what I mean.”
Catastrophizing: You believe what might
happen will be so awful and unbearable that you won’t be able to
stand it. “It would be terrible if I failed.” “If I make a bad grade
then I will never get into a good college.”
Labeling: You assign general negative traits to yourself and
others. “I’m disgusting.” “He’s horrible.” “She’s irrelevant.”
Discounting Positives: You claim that the
positives that you or others have don’t matter. “That’s what I’m
supposed to do, so it doesn’t count.” “Those successes were easy
so they don’t matter.”
Negative Filter: You focus almost exclusively on the negatives
and seldom notice the positives. “Look at all the terrible things
on the news.” “Girls never have anything nice to say.”
Overgeneralizing: You perceive the likelihood of a negative
outcome based upon a single incident. “I fail all the time.”
All-or-None Thinking: You view events or people
in all-or-none/black-and-white terms. “It was a
waste of time.” “I get rejected by everyone.”
“Nothing ever goes my way.”
Shoulds: You interpret events in terms of how things should be
rather than simply focusing on what is. “I should do well; if I don’t, I’m a failure.”
Personalizing: You attribute a most of the blame to yourself for
negative events and fail to see that certain situations are also
caused by others. “My relationship ended because I wasn’t fun
enough.” “It was my fault my group got a bad
grade.”
Blaming: You focus on the other person as the source of your
negative feelings and refuse to take responsibility for changing
yourself. “She’s to blame for the way I feel.” “My parents caused
all my problems.” “My teacher is the reason I’m not doing well.”
Judgment Focus: You view yourself, others, and events in terms of
evaluations of “good” and “bad” or “right” and “wrong” rather than
simply describing, accepting, or understanding. “I didn’t perform
well.” “I tried it, and I just kept doing it wrong.” “Look how successful
she is, I’m not that successful.”
Regret Orientation: You focus on the idea that you could have
done better in the past, rather than on what you can do better
now. “I could have had a better job if I had tried harder.” “I
shouldn’t have said that.” “I always mess up.”
What if: You keep asking a series of questions about what if
something happens, and fail to be satisfied with any of the answers.
“Yeah, but what if I get anxious, and I can’t catch my breath.”
Emotional Reasoning: You let your feelings guide your
interpretation of reality. “I feel sad, therefore I must be
depressed.” “I feel anxious, therefore I must be in danger.”
Inability to Disconfirm: You reject any evidence or
arguments that might contradict your negative thoughts. “I’m
unlovable – my friends hang out with me only because they must feel
sorry for me.” “I’m a bad person – I only help others because it makes
me feel better about myself.”
Unfair Comparisons: You interpret events in terms of
standards that are unrealistic. “Others did better than I did on the
test.” “People my age are more successful than I am.”
Unhelpful Thinking Styles
All or nothing Over-
x
thinking Sometimes called ‘black generalising
and white thinking’ Seeing a pattern based
“everything is upon a single event, or
If I’m not perfect I have failed always rubbish” being overly broad in the
“nothing good conclusions we draw
Either I do it right or not at all ever happens”
Mental filter Disqualifying Discounting the good
Only paying attention to the positive things that have happened
certain types of evidence.
or that you have done for
Noticing our failures but +++ some reason or another
not seeing our successes
That doesn’t count
Jumping to There are two key types of Magnification Blowing things out of
conclusions jumping to conclusions: (catastrophising) proportion
• Mind reading & minimisation (catastrophising), or
(imagining we know what inappropriately shrinking
others are thinking) something to make it seem
• Fortune telling less important
2+2=5 (predicting the future)
should
Emotional Using critical words like
reasoning Assuming that because we ‘should’, ‘must’, or ‘ought’
feel a certain way what we can make us feel guilty, or
must
think must be true. like we have already failed
I feel embarrassed so I must If we apply ‘shoulds’ to
be an idiot other people the result is
often frustration
Labelling Personalisation Blaming yourself or taking
Assigning labels to
ourselves or other people responsibility for
D “this is something that wasn’t
completely your fault.
UPI
I’m a loser
Conversely, blaming other
ST I’m completely useless
They’re such an idiot my fault” people for something that
was your fault.
PSYCHOLOGYT LS.org
Name the Pattern!
Negative Thought Dysfunctional Pattern Rational, Positive
thought
I got into trouble at school Jumping to Conclusions I did something at school
today. I just know they’re going (Fortune-Telling) today that I’m not proud of,
to kick me out tomorrow. but everyo0ne makes
(also a bit of mistakes and it’s not the
Catastrophizing) end of the world! I’ll try
harder tomorrow not to
make the same mistake
again.
My friend looked at his watch Personification I can’t know for certain why
when I was talking today. He my coworker looked at his
must be thinking I’m boring. watch when I was talking. If
he thought I was boring, he
probably wouldn’t come
over to talk to me every day!
I got an award at the assembly Minimizing Positives I worked really hard to get
yesterday, but that’s no big that award! My hard work
deal. I’m not really that good of really paid off!
a student.
If I don’t get a date to the Catastrophizing It would be really difficult
homecoming dance, there’s’ no not to get a date to the
way I could ever go back to dance, but I could still go
school and face my classmates with my friends and have a
again! good time. Maybe there’ll be
other people there without
dates!
There’s no way I could ever be Comparison Our star quarterback is
as talented as the star really talented! Even if I’m
quarterback on the football never quite as good as he is,
team. I shouldn’t even try. it doesn’t mean I shouldn’t
play. There are lots of other
things I’m good at!
I only got a B on my reading All - Or - Nothing Even though a B isn’t what I
test. I always fail. I shouldn’t was hoping for on that test,
have even tried. it’s still pretty good! Next
time I could study even
more and see if can do even
better!
I can’t believe I gained 3 Maximizing Negatives Wow. I didn’t realize I’ve
pounds. I’m so fat and ugly. gained 3 pounds, but that
doesn’t define all of who I
am. I’ll just make sure to get
my exercise in 3 times this
week and stop having
Mountain Dew with every
meal.
My teacher didn’t answer me Jumping to Conclusions My teacher didn’t answer
when I said hello to her this (Mind Reading) me when I said hello to her
morning. She’s probably mad at this morning. She might be
me for something. upset with me, but I can’t
know that for sure unless
she tells me so. May be she
didn’t hear me?
Another student called me a Overgeneralization A student teased me today,
name once today. People are but that’s his problem! Lots
always making fun of me. of other people are friends
with me. I don’t need to
dwell on one negative
experience.
I must get all A’s to be a good Shoulds/Musts I’m a good student as long
student. as I do the best that I can
and work hard each day. I
don’t have to be perfect.
I hate how I look, so I must look Emotional Reasoning Just because there are
ugly to everyone else too. some things I don’t like
about my appearance
doesn’t mean everyone
feels that way! No one is
perfect!
