«Mental control» from a third-wave behavior therapy perspective

Abstract

Most third-wave behavior therapies and, more specifically, Behavioral

Activation (BA), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Mindfulness-Based

Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) and Dialectic Behavior Therapy (DBT), have proposed

alternatives for intervention for intrusive thoughts, painful memories, unpleasant daydreams

or ruminative depressive discourses. While traditional behavior therapy seeks to eliminate

such thoughts (or at least reduce their duration, frequency and intensity), or otherwise

question their credibility and then replace them with other more positive or adapted

thoughts, in the new forms of behavior therapy, direct intervention for them is

discarded, and therefore, techniques such as distraction or thought replacement, thought

stopping or cognitive restructuring are no longer considered advisable. In this paper,

we review the body of scientific evidence on the usefulness of acceptance and mindfulness

based interventions. Although the results are promising, it is true that more data is

necessary to demonstrate that these techniques are always recommended over the

traditional therapies.