Novice Counselor's blog

Some social-cognitive theorists like Hazel Markus would say that self-esteem is dependent upon how successfully we measure up to our self-schemas or internal representations of the ideal self. Similarly, other social-cognitive theorists like Tory Higgins theorize that self-esteem depends on self-guides, or personal standards that individuals like to meet. Discrepancies between self-guides and how things are actually going for an individual cause negative emotions such as anxiety or sadness, and possibly low self-esteem.

Social-cognitive theory is based on the assumption that psychopathology results from unrealistic, maladaptive cognitions. One social-cognitive approach, Rational Emotive Therapy supposes that psychological difficulties such as low self-esteem are caused by irrational beliefs or irrational statements that people make to themselves. Therapy then involves identifying and disputing these irrational beliefs.

Social cognitive theory holds that maladaptive responses are learned as a result of exposure to inadequate and “sick” models of behavior. The idea of perceived self-efficacy also plays a central role in social cognitive theory. Perceived inefficacy in relation to rewarding outcomes leads to depression, low self-esteem and other dysfunctional cognitions. Dysfunctional expectancies and self-conceptions are at the core of perceived inefficacy.

Therapeutic change in social-cognitive theory involves the acquisition and maintenance of new patterns of thought and behavior through modeling and guided mastery. The main goal is to acquire change in the sense of efficacy. Desired activities are demonstrated by various models who experience positive consequences or at least no adverse consequences. The client views a model performing beneficial behaviors and also assists in performing the behaviors. In contrast with therapeutic approaches that emphasize verbal communication, social-cognitive theory concentrates on mastery experiences as vehicles of change.

In summary, there is no one theory or technique of social-cognitive therapy. Clinical applications of social-cognitive theory have had a tremendous impact on the field of therapy. Psychopathology is viewed as arising from distorted, incorrect, maladaptive cognitions concerning the self, others, and events in the world. Therapeutic change involves the process of replacing these maladaptive cognitions with ones that are more realistic and adaptive.