The ABC Model
The ABC Model
The ABC Model
www.renaissancelifetherapies.com
The ABC Model
A = Activating Event
B = Belief (Thought)
C = Consequences (Emotional and or Behavioural)
www.renaissancelifetherapies.com
Example of the ABC Model:
Activating Event: I email a friend to suggest we meet in the evening. The evening
comes and she has not responded
Belief: She is usually reliable. I must have offended her so she’s ignored my email
www.renaissancelifetherapies.com
The ABC Model (Example)
C C
A B
Consequences Consequences
Activating Event Belief (Thought)
Emotion Behaviour
www.renaissancelifetherapies.com
Dispute your belief, by questioning it and considering alternatives:
Questioning Your Beliefs in a Reasonable Way
CBT is not about ignoring negative thoughts or necessarily jumping to the opposite conclusion, it is
concerned with evaluating thoughts in a reasonable and practical way. If there is some truth in your
beliefs, you can acknowledge it, but recognise where you are exaggerating or being inflexible, and
moderate your view accordingly.
Having identified your negative belief, use the “Disputation Checklist” which you can go through to
help you evaluate your belief in a reasonable way. It is not supposed to be an exhaustive checklist
but offers examples of the kind of questions which may help you to think more realistically if you are
prone to making irrational assumptions or to holding negative beliefs which may not be warranted.
On the next page I set out the 11 questions in the disputation checklist in the context of the ABC
Model. Let’s see how one might use the checklist to evaluate the belief in that example.
www.renaissancelifetherapies.com
Disputation Checklist (Example)
Q No Questions for evaluating any beliefs Considered Response
The email may not have got through or she may not
have opened it yet. Perhaps she is not in her office for
What alternative possibilities are there and what
3 evidence is there to suggest they might be true?
some reason today so has not seen the email.
She might have meant to respond but got distracted by
something else and forgotten
I can see that although my explanation is possible, it is a
4 Is my belief balanced or is it too extreme or inflexible? bit extreme and dogmatic. There are other possible
explanations which are at least as likely
7 What could I do to check out if my belief is true? I could call my friend or ask her when I next speak to her
If my belief is true what is the most constructive way I Try and find out what upset her and apologise if
8 could react? appropriate
Alternatively complete the ABC Model analysis in respect of a typical situation where
you know you might experience negative beliefs and feelings, to give yourself an idea
of how you might try to balance your thoughts if the situation arises again.
Use the Disputation Checklist to help you evaluate the belief(s) you write down in your
ABC analysis. Then come up with a potential balancing thought (your considered
response to Q.11 in the Disputation Checklist).
www.renaissancelifetherapies.com
The ABC Model
C C
A B
Consequences Consequences
Activating Event Belief (Thought)
Emotion Behaviour
www.renaissancelifetherapies.com
Disputation Checklist
Q No Questions for evaluating any beliefs Considered Response