COGNITIVE BEHAVIORAL PSYCHOLOGY

Many, associate psychological action to psychoanalysis  and, even worse, psychoanalysis to madness. Psychological action, on the contrary, is present in our lives practically from the moment we open our eyes until we close them.

It is present in every interaction with other people, either directly, in our personal relationships, or indirectly, through television, books, and social media.

In these interactions we could find an encouragement to follow the rules or to violate them, to be kind or hostile to others, to be persistent in our goals or to become indolent, and so on.

It will be argued that everyone is as they are, regardless the stimuli they receive from their social environment, and this is partly true, especially when the person has already been raised and educated. But how did this person become the person he/she is?

Probably, he/she has received countless influences, whether positive or harmful, casual or intentional, based or not on psychological knowledge, which have contributed to mold an individual until he is what he is, and what he can still become (Bandura, 1987).

But by using cognitive behavioral psychology in a conscious, systematic, and well-intentioned manner, one seeks: 

• To inform children about the rules that govern a certain institution, be it home, school or any other.
• Set examples of behavior worthy of imitation.
• Reward and, consequently, develop (reinforce) desirable behaviors.
• Reduce the unwanted ones, through punishment and extinction.
• Teach them how to reach and keep agreements;
• As well as to exercise their rights and respect those of others.
• Also, how to tolerate differences and understand others, and finally;
• How to manage their own thoughts, feelings and behaviors favoring the possibility of being happy and in harmony with society.

There is no need to insist on the fact that people raised in this way will not accept arbitrary impositions of powers that presume to be above citizens or above the law; nor will they, as individuals, seek to do the same. They will know how to argue without abusively disqualifying the other but knowing how to keep his arguments strong. 

They will understand that they must abide by the law and, in the case they consider them inadequate, they will advocate for its change. They will have gotten used to having behaviors that contribute to the collective, obtaining satisfaction from their social actions. In other words, an individual that will not only be prepared to adapt naturally to democratic life, but also to be a productive actor in the development of society.

To summarize, we could say that the psychological wellbeing of every individual, as well as the development of a capable and democracy-maker citizen is something we are all permanently building or undoing. This is not something that is done in a particular way, under specific circumstances.

For instance, people tend to believe that it is enough to give teenager’s just a few pep-talks at school for them to have a proper sex education, without realizing that they have been receiving it constantly. As we mentioned earlier, for better or worse, through countless direct and indirect human interactions.

In short, psychological action is there permanently among us. Will we direct our personal contribution in the best possible way?

In my book WHAT DO I DO NOW? NO ONE TAUGHT ME HOW TO BE A MOM!  You will find 27 common problems in children from birth to 12 years. Regarding this specific issue of the cognitive behavioral psychology, you can review the following sections: Reinforcing behaviors, Extinguishing behaviors, Punishing behaviors, Modeling behaviors, thoughts and feelings, Informing and Establishing rules and imposing limits.

You can also visit this Blog, especially the topics Should parents influence their children?, Psychology as pedagogy and Educate; or visit Facebook Urquia Larralde (psykia), Instagram @psykia20 and Twitter @psykia20 

I appreciate any comments, questions, suggestions, or constructive criticism that you want to make through. psykia20@gmail.com or by WhatsApp: +58 414 929 1676. They are welcome and I will gladly answer them. 

BIBLIOGRAPHIC REFERENCE:

Bandura, Albert (1987): Pensamiento y Acción. Fundamentos Sociales, Publisher Martínez Roca, Barcelona, España.