Assignment: Cognitive or RET Approach
Assignment: Cognitive or RET Approach
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In this week’s Discussion, you evaluated strengths and weaknesses of using a behavioral/cognitive approach with a client. In this Application, you are asked to evaluate a client using a specific behavioral/cognitive approach.
To prepare for this assignment:
· Bring to mind what you have learned in the past two weeks about cognitive and RET theories and their respective theoretical approaches. Select one of these approaches on which to base this assignment.
· Review Client Profile 2: Aaron in this week’s Learning Resources, and think about how you might use your chosen approach with this client.
· Review the course text readings and the media segments for this week, paying attention to how the experts use a specific theoretical orientation, or approach, to evaluate a client.
The assignment:
· In a 1- to 3-page paper, critically evaluate the client in Client Profile 2 using either a cognitive or RET approach. Make sure you address:
·
. The strengths and limitations to using this approach with this client
. The specific cultural/gender/age issues that need to be attended to with this client
. The ethical or legal issues that need to be attended to with this client
. The overall therapeutic goal with this client
Client Profile #2
Name: Aaron B. Gender: Male Age: 17
Ethnicity: Syrian-American Religion: Jewish
Relationship Status: Single
Description of Presenting Issue:
Aaron was referred for counseling by his physician. Aaron is a star athlete on the high-school track team and attributes all his symptoms to his efforts to be the best possible runner that he can. He eats little, limiting his diet severely, and now weighs only 120 pounds, even though he is 5’10” tall. He believes that if he can lose another 10 pounds, he will be able to run even faster. Aaron keeps lists of everything he eats, weighing each food item and computing its fat content. In addition, he tracks his daily training by keeping a record of how many minutes he runs and how many steps he takes, counting his steps as he runs. Aaron also has many other lists that guide his life, including a list of every possession he owns and every person he talks to each day. If he forgets to include an item on one of his lists, he becomes very anxious and only calms down when he has recopied the list with the forgotten item at the top of the list. He tends to check his lists repeatedly, making sure that words are in alphabetical and size order. Despite his youth, he has few friends and activities other than his running, but is able to work delivering pizzas.
Occupation History: Part-time pizza delivery
Education History: Currently attends high school; maintains a B+ average
Medical History: Aaron acknowledges that he has developed osteopenia (thinning of the bones) and also tells you that he has knee and shin pain.
Family History: Aaron is an only child. His mother and father divorced when Aaron was 10 due to his father’s infidelity. Aaron lives primarily with his mother. She owns a successful interior design business and travels frequently. Aaron describes his mother as hard-working, with high standards and expectations. Aaron’s father works in the finance industry, was remarried four years ago, and has two children (ages 1 and 3) with his second wife.
Alcohol / Substance Use: Aaron does not smoke, drink alcohol, or use illegal substances. He occasionally takes Vicodin (a painkiller) prescribed by his physician for his knee and shin pain.
Resources
· Course Text: Case Approach to Counseling and Psychotherapy Chapter 7, “Case Approach to Behavior Therapy” Chapter 8, “Case Approach to Cognitive Behavior Therapy”
· (MS Word format) Be sure to print out this document as you will need to refer to it for the media segment on the Counseling and Psychotherapy Theories DVD and this week’s Discussion and Application assignments.
Media
