Discussion: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy: Comparing Group, Family, and Individual Settings

Discussion: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy: Comparing Group, Family, and Individual Settings

There are significant differences in the applications of cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) for families and individuals. The same is true for CBT in group settings and CBT in family settings. In your role, it is essential to understand these differences to appropriately apply this therapeutic approach across multiple settings. For this Discussion, as you compare the use of CBT in individual, group, and family settings, consider challenges of using this approach with groups you may lead, as well as strategies for overcoming those challenges.

Instructions:

Respond to your colleague (see below colleague post) by:

1. Recommending strategies to overcome the challenges your colleagues have identified.

2. Support your recommendation with evidence-based literature and/or your own experiences with clients.

3. **minimum of three (3) scholarly references are required for each reply cited within the body of the reply & at the end**

Felicia Maher 

Week 5 Discussion: CBT Initial Post

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a structured, didactic, and goal-oriented form of therapy. The therapist and patient work in a collaborative manner to modify patterns of thinking and behavior to bring change in the patient's mood and way of living. CBT has been used in wide range of problems, with profound benefits  in psychiatric disorders like depression, anxiety disorders, and personality disorders, also used as an adjunctive treatment to medication for mental disorders like bipolar disorder and schizophrenia and in the treatment of non-psychiatric disorders like irritable bowel syndrome, fibromyalgia, insomnia, and chronic pain condition, appropriate treatment protocols are applied depending on the diagnosis and problems the patient is facing. According to Melton (2017), it has been adapted and studied for children, adolescents, adults, couples, families and group settings.

Several treatment modalities exist for treating psychiatric disorders but current international guidelines recommend cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) as the first-line treatment. Guo et al., (2021) compared CBT modalities and concluded that Individual-CBT had more benefits than Group-CBT for anxiety disorders. However, group-CBT is likely to offer more opportunities for normalization, positive peer modeling, reinforcement, social support, and exposure to social situations while being more cost-effective and saving on medical resources. On the contrary Individual-CBT would offer more opportunities for individualization of treatment to address the specific needs of each patient, and avoidant behavior may be more readily addressed. Therefore choice on CBT modality remains tailored on patient need and advanced nurse practitioner preference based on needs. 

The success of CBT relies on addressing its barriers and reinforcing facilitators. Murphy et al (2020) evidently shows different levels of barriers at individual and organization level such as understaffing, which can be addressed by embracing technology like telemedicine which has equal acceptability and patient satisfaction as face-to-face modality.  

References

Guo, T., Su, J., Hu, J., Aalberg, M., Zhu, Y., Teng, T., & Zhou, X. (2021). Individual vs. Group Cognitive Behavior Therapy for Anxiety Disorder in Children and Adolescents: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials. Frontiers in psychiatry, 12, 674267.  https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2021.674267

Melton, L. (2017). Brief introduction to cognitive behavioral therapy for the advanced practitioner in oncology. Journal of the Advanced Practitioner in Oncology, 8(2), 188-193. doi:10.6004/jadpro.2017.8.2.6

Murphy, R., Calugi, S., Cooper, Z., & Dalle Grave, R. (2020). Challenges and opportunities for enhanced cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT-E) in light of COVID-19. The Cognitive Behaviour Therapist, 13. doi:10.1017/S1754470X20000161