PSYCHOLOGIA
Online ISSN : 1347-5916
Print ISSN : 0033-2852
ISSN-L : 0033-2852
SPECIAL ISSUE: EVIDENCE AND NARRATIVES IN PSYCHOTHERAPY RESEARCH AND PRACTICE Guest Editor: Junko Tanaka-Matsumi
MISCONCEPTIONS AND MISUNDERSTANDINGS OF BEHAVIORAL ACTIVATION: PERSPECTIVES FROM A MAJOR PROPONENT
Christopher R. MARTELL
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2013 Volume 56 Issue 2 Pages 131-137

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Abstract

Behavioral treatments for depression that originated in the early 1970s have emerged again in the early 21st century known as Behavioral Activation (BA). The current formulation of BA is based on the earlier work, and represents a refinement rather than a completely new approach. As the treatment has gained in popularity, several misconceptions and misunderstandings about the treatment have developed: that it is unique; that there are multiple, substantially different forms of BA; that the treatment requires specific strategies be used in all cases; and that the treatment is conducted in a lock-step fashion. In this article one of the primary authors of the main texts/protocols for BA argues that these are misconceptions and that BA needs to remain a treatment driven by a good functional analysis of the individual case, and that, at the most basic level, BA is just good behavior therapy for depression.

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© 2013 by the PSYCHOLOGIA SOCIETY
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