Thinking Errors

Thinking Errors

We all make errors in thinking (cognitive distortions) sometimes. However, if they are too frequent or become habitual, they can maintain low mood, and cause us to suffer unnecessarily.

Overall, taking our thoughts at face value (my thought = a fact) is the main error. Thoughts are just thoughts, and their level of accuracy, as a reflection of the reality, can range from 0-100%. We all have had the experience of being wrong sometimes; some of us are better at acknowledging this than others, but it is a universal experience.

 

When having a negative thought, ask yourself:

Is there another possible explanation or another way to look at this situation that I am not seeing? What does the more objective evidence say? Is there information that I am missing to make the conclusion I am making? What would a friend tell me if they knew I was having this thought, or what would I tell a friend? What will I think about this 20 years from now?

 

Am I making one of these errors?

All-or-nothing thinking (all bad or all good) and Overgeneralization (always, never): e.g., telling your partner he/she/they “always leave the dishes on the counter”.

Magnifying the negative and minimizing the positive: e.g., focusing on “I was not able to answer one of the questions well during my presentation”; not recognizing that ten questions were answered well and the presentation was great.

Jumping to conclusions: e.g., “my boss made many edits to my work, I will never get a promotion”.

Emotional reasoning: e.g., “I feel so nervous, it must show and I will do badly”.

Labeling: “I am an idiot”.

Personalization and “Shoulds”: “It’s all my fault. I should have known better”.

Sometimes, our negative thoughts can be accurate and reflect a problem or an unfortunate reality. In this case, the more relevant question is:

“Is there a more helpful way to think about this?”

Maybe I don’t enjoy physics, and it is difficult for me to understand most concepts. Focusing on this will not be helpful for an exam.

When possible, suspending judgment can also be helpful. We tend to categorize events as “good” or “bad” (following all-or-nothing thinking). Not only are things rarely entirely one or the other, but our evaluation of them can change over time. Someone may suffer a loss, for instance the loss of a job or a divorce, and feel that it is “the worst thing” that could happen. Five or ten years later, the same person may report that it was “the best thing” that happened to them, as it brought them to a much better place in their life. We just don’t know when a door closes which one will open next.

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