The Benefits of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy When Used with Children and Adolescents

The benefits of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy when used with children and adolescents

“People don’t just get upset. They contribute to their upsetness. They always have the power to think, and to think about their thinking, and to think about thinking about their thinking, which the goddamn dolphin, as far as we know, can’t do. Therefore they have much greater ability to change themselves than any other animal has, and I hope that REBT teaches them how to do it.” -Albert Ellis

Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) is a recently new, now highly popular counseling approach (Weinrach et. al, 1995). It was first coined REBT by Albert Ellis in 1993. The purpose of REBT is, as stated in the Dictionary of Rational-Emotive Feelings and Behaviors,

“to help clients and others to clearly see the differences between their rational beliefs and their irrational beliefs, to understand the disordered feelings and behaviors to which the latter lead, and to help them become more rational, less disturbed, and less dysfunctional in their activities…(p. 3)”

This approach focuses on the idea that emotional disturbances emerge from faulty thinking about events rather than from the events themselves (Gonzalez et. al, 2004).

The ABCDE acronym is a treatment that REBT counselors frequently use. It begins with building a relationship with the client and having the client relate the Activating event to the counselor. “B” stands for the client’s belief system or cognitive reaction to the activating event. “C” is the emotional consequence that the client is experiencing, such as feeling angry or intimidated. “D” suggests that the client learn to dispute self-defeating thought processes, and “E” is the effect of the disputing process (Nystul, 2006).

Although one may assume that REBT counseling for adults is the same as it is for children, it is not. Unlike with adults, children and adolescents rarely perceive themselves as someone who would need therapeutic treatment. Another difference between REBT for children and adults is that children seldom refer themselves for treatment; rather they are referred by their parents, teacher, or other caretakers. REBT has been applied to children and adolescents exhibiting conduct disorders, aggression, test anxiety, disruptive classroom behaviors, attention deficit/hyperactive disorder, low self esteem, low self concept, irrationality, general anxiety, and low academic achievement (Gonzalez et. al, 2004).

One meta-analysis was done in January 2002 by Jorge E. Gonzalez, J. Ron Nelson, Terry B. Gutkin, Anita Saunders, Ann Galloway, and Craig S. Shwery. The major purpose of this meta-analysis was to “evaluate the impact of REBT on treatment outcomes for children and adolescents” (Gonzalez et. al, 2004). A computer search was done looking for studies involving REBT and children/adolescents dating from 1972 to January 2002. Each study was then coded according to its outcome and/or client characteristics.

There were seven important findings. Most importantly, it was proven that the effects of psychotherapy with children and adolescents were beneficial and of a respectable magnitude. Second, REBT had its most pronounced impact on disruptive behaviors. This finding was not surprising being that disruptive behaviors are among the most frequently reported problems with children and adolescents (Gonzalez et. al, 2004).

Third, “studies high in internal validity were statistically equivalent to studies low in internal validity, suggesting no relative difference in variation in effect sizes as a function of this important dimension (Gonzalez et. al, 2004). Fourth, REBT was found to be equally effective for children with identified problems and children without identified problems. This shows that REBT may be useful for both intervention and prevention purposes with a wide range of students.

Fifth, the weighted effect sizes showed that non-mental health professionals had more of an effect on the children. Sixth, the greatest impact of REBT among children and adolescents occurred in the “medium to high” treatment duration. This is basically saying that the longer the session, the greater the impact of the sessions on the children/adolescents. Finally, the REBT treatment effects were greater for elementary school-age children than they were for both middle and high school students (Gonzalez et. al, 2004).

In another study, done by Ann Vernon, an educative approach was used to help clients “overcome self defeating emotions and behaviors that prevent them from achieving their goals and achieving happiness” (Vernon, 1996). This study involves an 8-year old girl by the name of Jessica.

When the counselor first met the