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What is the Acceptance and Commitment Therapy?
Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) is a term used in psychology. Acceptance and commitment therapy is a therapeutic approach of cognitive behavioral therapy, a sub-spectrum of psychotherapy. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) was created in the last 20 years by the psychologist Steven Hayes. While “classic” cognitive behavioral therapy is about re-evaluating and reformulating negative thoughts or events, ACT (as the name suggests) is about accepting these unpleasant inner experiences and thoughts and not about changing these cognitive contents. Mindfulness- and acceptance-based elements in the form of small exercises and metaphors are used for this purpose.
This part therefore covers acceptance in the ACT, where one's own values are the central element. Values are deeply rooted convictions, attitudes and ideals that are important to us as human beings, such as loyalty or autonomy. Values are therefore what we want for ourselves and what is personally important to us in life. They give people a certain direction and orientation in life. Similar to goals - but there is a key difference (as you can see in the video below). Acting according to your values leads to greater satisfaction and quality of life in the long term. Why? Because it feels good for us to act in accordance with what is important to us in our lives and everyday life. And that brings us to the commitment part of the whole thing - as soon as we have clarity about our own values, we can literally ACT!
We use concrete steps to work out how we can act in accordance with our values in the short, medium and long term without being held back by negative feelings or thoughts.
An actionable result.
The six core processes of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
The methods of ACT are based on six central processes: Attention, acceptance, cognition, self-concept, values and action.
- attention - being in the here and now without dwelling too much on the past or future
- acceptance - especially of thoughts and emotions, without avoiding them or distracting yourself from them. Psychological flexibility means allowing unpleasant thoughts and feelings to be present.
- cognition - flexibility here means what is known as cognitive defusion, i.e. letting go of thoughts, rules and patterns that are too rigid and stressful. Metaphors are often used for this. You can find one of them below in the video.
- self-concept - this is about accepting the many different roles you have in different contexts and being able to switch flexibly between them without getting stuck in one.
- values - always being aware of your own values, even when you are experiencing negative emotions.
- action - the commitment to oneself to always act in accordance with one's own values (even if only in small ways).
The overarching goal of ACT is always so-called psychological flexibility, which generally means that you are able to be present in the present moment and act according to your own values in line with your commitment. However, psychological flexibility is also sought in the individual core processes.
But I don't really need therapy?
Sure, behavioral and psychotherapy is not right for everyone. But the methods of ACT can also be wonderfully integrated into everyday life in the form of small thought-provoking impulses or mindfulness exercises, even if you don't feel that you need the “complete program” from start to finish. The values work, for example, probably has a few 'aha' moments for everyone (as is always the case when you are dealing with your own head and your emotional world 😉). Psychology also offers a suitable preventative measure in the form of ACT methods. So if you'd like to familiarize yourself with ACT in general, take a look at the YouTube channel of Russ Harris, one of the best-known proponents of ACT.
Many ACT materials are available free of charge - something that also contributes to the fact that the whole thing is used in many different contexts alongside traditional behavioral and psychotherapy. So ACT is basically much more of an attitude than just a pure psychological form of therapy.If we have piqued your interest, take a look at the two videos linked here for more in-depth information 😊
As you browse through this channel, you will find many more short ACT clips of this kind.
Sushi Train Metaphor - Dr. Russ Harris
Values vs. Goals - Dr. Russ Harris
