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Behavior Therapy: Basic Concepts, Assessment Methods, and Applications.

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Behavior Therapy: Basic Concepts, Assessment Methods, and Applications.
Behavior Therapy: Basic Concepts, Assessment Methods, and Applications.

Different kinds of psychotherapies have existed throughout history, and have always been rooted in philosophical views of human nature (Wachtel P., 1997). Specifically, behavior therapy intents to help individuals overcome difficulties in nearly any aspect of human experience (Thorpe G. & Olson S., 1990). The techniques of behavior therapy have been applied to education, the workplace, consumer activities, and even sports, but behavior therapy in clinical settings is largely concerned with the assessment of mental health problems. In general, behavior therapy is a type of psychotherapy that aims on changing undesirable types of behavior. It engages in identifying objectionable, maladaptive behaviors and replacing them with healthier ones. . According to Rimm D. & Masters J. (1974), the label “behavior therapy” comprises a large number of different techniques that make use of psychological-especially learning- principles to deal with maladaptive human behavior.

Behavior therapy is a relative new kind of psychotherapy (Corsini R. & Wedding D., 2008). As a systematic approach, behavior therapy began in the 1950’s, in order to assess and treat psychological disorders. Behavior therapy was developed by a small group of psychologists and physicians who were not satisfied with the conventional techniques of psychotherapy (Thorpe G. et al, 1990). They linked behavior therapy to experimental psychology, differentiating it from other preexisting approaches. During behavior therapy’s first phase, the applied developed from principles of classical and operant conditioning.
There are varying views about the best way to define behavior therapy. However, most health professionals agree to Eysenck's definition: “Behavior therapy is the attempt to alter human behavior and emotions in a beneficial way according to the laws of modern learning theory”. Erwin E. (1978), instead of proposing a specific



References: Corsini R, & Wedding D. (2008). Current Psychotherapies. Eifert, G., & Plaud, J. (1998). From behavior theory to behavior therapy (pp Erwin E. (1978). Behavior Therapy: Scientific, Philosophical, & Moral Foundations Harold (1990). Handbook of Social and Evaluation Anxiety. Lieberman D. (2004). Learning and Memory: an integrative approach Plaud, J. (2001). Clinical science and human behavior. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 57, 1089-1102. Rimm D., & Masters J. (1974). Behavior Therapy: Techniques and Empirical Findings Thorpe G., & Olson S. (1990). Behavior Therapy: Concepts, Procedures and Applications Wachtel P., (1997). Psychoanalysis, Behavior Therapy, and the Relational World Wolpe, J., & Plaud, J.(1997). Pavlov’s contributions to behavior therapy: The obvious and the not so Wolpe, Joseph. 1958. Psychotherapy by Reciprocal Inhibition Yates A., 1975). Theory and Practice in Behavior Therapy.

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