Prior to beginning work on this discussion,
Read the Assessment Strategies sections in Chapters 5 and 6 of the course textbook.
Read the required articles The Use of Behavioral Experiments to Modify Delusions and Paranoia: Clinical Guidelines and Recommendations (Links to an external site.) and the Treatment of Mental Hypochondriasis: A Case Report (Links to an external site.) (Combs et al., 2007; Weck, 2014).
Read Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Techniques that Work (Links to an external site.), CBT and Behavioural Experiments (Links to an external site.), and Giving a Rationale for CBT (Links to an external site.) (Boyes, 2012; Lebon, 2009, 2012).
Choose a specific disorder, and then conduct web research to find a person (i.e., living or not, historical, famous, and/or even fictional) who suffers from one of the conditions listed. You will then use this individual as a case study for the specifications that follow for this discussion. Choose from the following list:
Agoraphobia
Anorexia or Bulimia
Generalized Anxiety Disorder
Depression
Panic Disorder
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
Specific Phobias (e.g., public speaking, heights, animals, etc.)
Substance Abuse
For your initial post of a minimum of 350 words, assume the role of a cognitive behavioral therapist who is treating the individual you have researched. Your initial post should address and focus on the following items rather than centering the activity on a detailed description of the disorder.
Briefly describe the disorder.
Identify the assessment strategy for diagnosing the disorder.
Describe in detail a cognitive behavioral experiment you might use with this client to address the chosen disorder. Your experiment should include both cognitive and behavioral aspects and be measurable.
Apply cognitive and behavioral theories to explain and justify your experiment.
Note that if your research does not turn up adequate data to fully support your thinking, feel free to speculate or use your imagination to provide plausible detail.