Abstract
The present article reviews the significance in cognitive behavior therapy of 2 concepts derived from cognitive psychology, automatic processing and controlled processing. The possible contribution of these concepts to the development of clinical psychology was discussed. Automatic processing is capacity-free, unconscious, and involuntary, whereas controlled processing is capacity-dependent, conscious, and voluntary. When emotions are aroused, they interfere with controlled processing, so that automatic processing becomes predominant. The cognitive process of emotional information is important for a model of emotional disorder. Two-cognitive-process theory is applicable to areas of cognitive and social psychology, and it is expected to be applicable to clinical psychology as well. The present authors believe that applying findings from other areas to clinical settings is one role for cognitive clinical psychology.
