Cognitive Reappraisal

By Tom Horvath, PhD

“We are disturbed not by events but by our views about them.” – Epictetus, 50-135 CE

The cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) tool known as cognitive reappraisal uses a fancy term for what is perhaps the fundamental idea of Stoicism: We can control our lives by controlling our “views” (or our “thoughts,” in the broad sense of that term).

There are many terms for view or thought, including:

• perspective
• viewpoint
• perception
• belief
• interpretation
• model
• map
• cognitive structure
• cognitive schema
• internal representation
• construct
• knowledge structure
• life script
• personal mythology
• interpretive framework
• mindset
• inner theory of reality
• assumed context

I’ll use the term “interpretation.”  We experience an almost instant change in our emotions when there is a significant change in our interpretation. If this change did not occur, then controlling our interpretations might not be beneficial.

Sometimes the emotional change occurs with the arrival of new information. Imagine I’m very annoyed that someone is late to meet me. Then I learn the person was rear-ended at a traffic light and required to stay for a collision investigation. My annoyance fades rapidly. Based on that change in situation I have shifted interpretations and shifted emotions also. At first it was thinking something like “this person does not respect me enough to be on time” and feeling annoyed. Now I’m thinking something like “being late has nothing to do with me” and perhaps having neutral feelings toward the person or active concern about them.

You can probably think of many examples in your life where your feelings changed rapidly. The possibility of this change is, I suggest, a central fact about human life. We need to remember it! We are not trapped in our feelings because we are not trapped in our interpretations.

A more difficult change of interpretation involves situations that new facts are not likely to change. Imagine someone has broken up with you and you’re feeling depressed, worthless, and hopeless. There may be no emerging facts that will lead to a new interpretation and new feelings. Furthermore, if your feelings are strong enough, they may interfere with your ability to think creatively about your new situation.

We are faced with these kinds of problems regularly. We would like a new interpretation, but how to get it? We need to stay aware of the underlying idea, that my emotions are based on my interpretation. Not only can it change. Over time it will change, even if you do not actively work to make it change. Many events that I once thought were terrible I now hardly think about. You could recall some examples, just to validate this point. It’s going to change!

Before we consider some general approaches to changing interpretations, let’s focus specifically on addictive problems.  Our initial interpretations run something like these:

• I need this behavior (using a substance, engaging in an activity).
• I can’t function (be happy, get work done, socialize, etc.) without this behavior.
• This behavior is a great solution for me.

If we study these interpretations, perhaps in psychotherapy, a mutual help group, or in addiction treatment, we can begin to see alternative interpretations. These new interpretations might be:

• The costs of this behavior outweigh the benefits; it’s time to change.
• I can figure out other ways to get the benefits.
• There may be nothing like the high I get from this behavior, but I can get close enough in other ways and won’t have to suffer the costs.
• This behavior has become more of a problem than a solution.
• I had a good time with this behavior, but it’s time to move on.

The term belief might work better for you than the term interpretation. My main point here is to remember that you can change them, whatever you call them. We also need to distinguish thoughts that spontaneously pass through ours head quickly, from enduring beliefs or interpretations. We have thousands of quick thoughts every day. Our beliefs or major interpretations are presumably far fewer in number. They tend not to pass through our minds unless we are focused on thinking about them. If you believe that “everyone is entitled to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” how often does that belief pop into your mind (maybe never)?

Notice that new interpretations might emerge over time. One of the reasons CBT therapists might regularly ask you to rate your strength of belief (the term CBT therapists prefer) is to help you recognize that you are indeed in the process of changing your beliefs, and that even if you are not paying much attention to them the beliefs are changing.

As you may have experienced, by actively addressing an interpretation we can change it more quickly. Here are some basic questions to consider:

• How accurate is my interpretation, based on what I already know? (Is this breakup primarily about me, or might there be relevant situational factors or factors about the person? For instance, have recent stresses in the person’s life pushed them to decide that a relationship at present is too much to deal with? Maybe this person does not last long in any relationship?)
• Others have faced similar situations. How did they deal with them? Conversations with friends and family, in mutual help groups, and even in casual conversation with strangers can be sources of ideas.
• What might the benefits of this change be? Every change has advantages and disadvantages. Am I so caught up in the downside that I am not considering the upside?
• What is the full range of possible ways I could interpret this situation? Brainstorming by yourself or with others might open your thinking.

For some years now my interpretation of psychotherapy is that regardless of the type, it fundamentally focuses on identifying and changing interpretation. Different therapies focus on different aspects of life. However, because our lives are so interconnected, by reinterpreting one part of it all the other parts will likely end up being adjusted as well. Our undesirable behavior or unwanted emotion will change also.

A recently published study provides some evidence of this idea. This publication inspired me to choose this blog topic:

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0005789425000425?dgcid=raven_sd_via_email

The investigators found that “increases in [your ability to conduct a] cognitive reappraisal predicted subsequent reductions in anxiety and depression scores at the following time point” (from the abstract). Re-stated more simply: if you improve your ability to examine and change your interpretations, your emotions will improve.

Furthermore, as they found and common sense suggests, with practice you keep getting even better at cognitive reappraisal, and hopefully arrive in time at equanimity and some happiness in your life. Other evidence suggests that as people age, they indeed arrive at or near that “place.” Whatever your age, may you keep moving there as quickly as possible!

Liked this article on cognitive reappraisal? You might also be interested in: We Are Disturbed Not by Events.