1. REBT
TECHNIQUES

2. Ellis recommends a “selectively
eclectic” approach to therapy, used
strategies interchangeably in no
systematic way but according to the
need of the hour. Following are the
strategies that are common in use, as
the name suggest it includes
• Cognitive Techniques
• Emotive Techniques
• Behavioral Techniques

3. COGNITIVE
TECHNIQUES

4. Cognitive Techniques aims at
teaching clients how to deal with self
statements so that they no longer believe
them and encourage them to acquire a
philosophy based on reality.
1. Rational analysis
2. Disputing irrational belief
3. Changing one’s language
4. Reframing

5. RATIONAL ANALYSIS
It is the first step in REBT, analyses
of specific episodes to teach the client how
to uncover and dispute irrational beliefs.
These are usually done in session at first;
then, as the client gets the idea, they can
be done as homework.

6. DISPUTING IRRATIONAL BELIEFS
It is actively disputing client’s
irrational beliefs and teaching them how to
do this challenging on their own. Client go
over a particular “must”, “should” or “ought”
until they longer hold that irrational belief or
at least until it is diminished in strength.
Disputing with irrational beliefs can be
done both by the therapist and the client.

7. CHANGE IN LANGUAGE
REBT contends that imprecise
language is one of the cause of distorted
thinking processes. Client’s learn that
“musts”, “shoulds” and “oughts” can be
replaced by preferences.

8. REFRAMING
Another strategy for getting bad
events into perspective is to re-evaluate
them as “disappointing”, “concerning”, or
“uncomfortable” rather than as awful or
unbearable. A variation of reframing is to
help the client see that even negative
events almost always have a positive side
to them

9. EMOTIVE
TECHNIQUES

10. Emotive Techniques helps the
clients to understand the value of
unconditional self acceptance and
unconditional other’s acceptance, even
though the behavior may be difficult to
accept, they can decide to see themselves
and others as worth while.
1. Rational-emotive imagery
2. Role playing
3. Shame attacking exercise
4. Use of force and vigor

11. RATIONAL-EMOTIVE IMAGERY
It is a form of intense mental practice
designed to establish new emotional patterns
by making the clients imagine themselves the
worst thing that could happen, unhealthy and
upset feelings, intense experience of feelings
and changing them to healthy and positive
feelings.
As clients change their feelings about
adversities, they stand a better chance of
changing their behavior in the real situation.

12. ROLE PLAYING
There are both emotional and
behavioral components in role playing.
Clients can rehearse certain behaviors to
bring out what they feel in a situation with
the therapist in a presumed environment.
The focus is on working through the
underlying irrational beliefs that are related
to unpleasant feelings.

13. SHAME ATTACKING EXERCISES
Ellis has developed exercises to help
people reduce shame over behaving in
certain ways. When we stubbornly refuse
to feel ashamed by telling ourself that it is
not catastrophic if someone thinks we are
foolish.
The exercises are aimed at
increasing self-acceptance and mature
responsibility.

14. USE OF FORCE AND VIGOR
It is a way to help clients go from
intellectual to emotional insight. Clients are
shown how to conduct forceful dialogues by
reverse role playing in which therapist adopts
the client’s belief and vigorously argues for it;
while the client tries to convince the therapist
that the belief is dysfunctional.
It is especially useful when the client
now sees the irrationality of a belief, but
needs help to consolidate that understanding.

15. BEHAVIORAL
TECHNIQUES

16. Behavioral Techniques are one of
the best ways to check out and modify a
belief by act. Clients can be encouraged to
check out the evidence for their fears and
to act in ways that disprove them. The
common techniques are
1. Exposure
2. Risk taking
3. Paradoxical behaviour
4. Postponing gratification

17. EXPOSURE
Possibly the most common
behavioural strategy used in REBT
involves clients entering feared situations
they would normally avoid. Such exposure
is deliberate, planned and carried out using
cognitive and other coping skills.

18. RISK TAKING
The purpose is to challenge
beliefs that certain behaviours are too
dangerous to risk, when reason says that
while the outcome is not guaranteed they
are worth the chance.

19. PARADOXICAL BEHAVIOR
When a client wishes to change a
dysfunctional tendency, encourage them to
deliberately behave in a way contradictory
to the tendency. Emphasise the
importance of not waiting until they feel like
doing it: practising the new behaviour even
though it is not spontaneous will gradually
internalise the new habit.

20. POSTPONING GRATIFICATION
Postponing gratification is commonly
used to combat low frustration-tolerance by
deliberately delaying smoking, eating
sweets, using alcohol, sexual activity, etc.

21. APPLICATION OF
REBT

22. REBT is widely used, such as
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Anger
• Marital difficulties
• Poor interpersonal skills
• Parenting failures
• Personality disorders
• Obsessive compulsive disorders
• Eating disorders
• Psychosomatic disorders
• Addiction

23. • Impulse control disorders
• Pain management
• Antisocial behavior
• Adjustment to chronic health problems
Non-clinical Applications
• Personal growth
• Workplace effectiveness

24. DIFFERENCE IN CBT
AND REBT

25. REBT CBT
 Modify the  Modify client’s
underlying core current behavior
belief  Focus on
 Focus on changing the
evaluating the client's behavior
irrational beliefs  Beck places more
 REBT is often emphasis on the
highly directive, client discovering
persuasive and misconceptions for
confrontive themselves.

26. PSYCHOTHERAPY VS PHARMACOTHERAPY

27. LIMITATIONS

28. REBT has been criticized as,
 Maladaptive cognitions in disturbed
people could be a consequence rather
than a cause.
 The model is narrow in scope as thinking
is just one human functioning.
 It ignores the role of individual
differences.
 REBT is aimed at changing cognitions
which is sometimes considered as
unethical.

29. REFERENCES

30.  Corey, G. (2005). Student manual theory
and practice of counseling and
psychotherapy. California: Brooks/Cole
publishers.
 Ellis, A., & Harper, R. (1997). Theory and
practice of counseling and psychotherapy.
California: Thomson Brooks/Cole.
 DiGuiseppe, R., (1996). The Nature of
Rational and Irrational Beliefs: Progress in
Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy
 Michler, F., (2004). Rational Emotive
Behavior Therapy: The Basics. National
Training Conference