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Cognitive Behavioral Therapy And Relapse Prevention Essay

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Cognitive Behaviour Therapy
The cognitive behavioural therapy and relapse prevention aim at improving social skills and self-control and are repeatedly found effective in reducing drinking, therefore making them ideal for treatment of alcohol abuse (79, 1090, 1092–1094). Cognitive behavioural therapy treatment, comprising of behavioural self-control training (including self-monitoring, goal setting, goal achievement rewards, analysis of drinking triggers and learning to cope with those triggers) and stress management interventions have produced better results than that of control treatments in fifty percent of studies (79, 1090, 1095–1097). Follow up studies also show better outcomes for the individuals who display improved self-efficacy at the conclusion of treatment (184, 1098–1100) as well as for those who used mastery or problem solving as a coping mechanism instead of avoiding triggering situations (43, 265, 959, 1101).
However, cognitive therapy interventions which do not include a behavioural component and only tend to modify maladaptive thoughts are found to be less effective (1102). Furthermore, CBT techniques are equally effective in group settings, although, results may also depend on client characteristics (1102-1104).

Behavioural therapy
Behavioural Therapy, that involves positive reinforcement for specific behaviours, has been documented to be effective with alcohol abusers (191,956,1090) and is therefore recommended approach for alcohol addiction.

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