Cognitive Defusion in Practice: A Clinician's Guide to Assessing, Observing, and Supporting Change in Your Client

by John T. Blackledge

This is a must-have book for anyone who practices, or is interested in, acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT).

Most people in the psychological community are familiar with the concept of cognitive defusion. This important practice rests on the premise that many of our thoughts, particularly self-evaluative thoughts (I’m not good enough, There’s something wrong with me, etc.), do not capture the full reality of a situation. Defusion techniques are used to undermine the authoritative nature of our thoughts, to expose them as simply words, rather than truths etched in stone.

Designed for use by mental health professionals and graduate students, Cognitive Defusion In Practice clearly conceptualizes cognitive defusion—an integral aspect of acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT)—for accessible and practical reference. The book also provides comprehensive descriptions of a great variety of defusion techniques, and illustrates how and when to introduce defusion in therapy.

This is a comprehensive, definitive, authoritative text on cognitive what it is, how to use it in session, and why it works. Because cognitive defusion is so effective, a great variety of defusion techniques are used in ACT to help clients gain greater psychological flexibility, but before now, there has not been a definitive resource available that outlines the practice in detail. This book will make a wonderful addition to your professional library, and will greatly enhance your delivery of ACT.

Genres: Psychology

200 pages, Paperback

First published February 2, 2015

Reviews

[Cristina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pequeño manual muy práctico ya que va directamente al grano, aportando diversas formas de trabajar la defusión cognitiva en sesión. Incluye un capítulo en el que se recogen distintos estudios en los que se evalúa los efectos de la defusión en los consultantes y dos cuestionarios para evaluarla.

[Heiki Eesmaa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very decent, compact. I think it would make a good primer and the literature review was useful for my own schoolwork.

[George Blake · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is written for therapists who want to add Cognitive Defusion to their toolbox but I think that patients could get a lot out of the book also. The author said “One of the core premises of Defusion is the assumption that words don’t accurately capture reality...Defusion teaches us how to step back from the words—and thus, from the thoughts—that cause us problems; how to take those words and thoughts less seriously.” The book is interesting and well written and does well to explain Defusion and gives many examples. I believe this technique is useful in its place but i am not convinced the CBT or Cognitive Defusion are the best technique for treating those with PTSD or other issues stemming Childhood Abuse. And thus, with that caveat, I highly recommend this book to therapists and patients.

[Salitre · Rating 4 out of 5]

Me ha gustado, da técnicas para usar en terapia. Lo recomiendo para psicólogos que quieran adentrarse en la ACT y en defusión cognitiva.