Cognitive Distortions

Distortion

Description

Examples / Characteristics

All-or-nothing thinking

Seeing things in black-and-white categories.

If a situation is not perfect, it is viewed as a total failure (e.g., “I’ve blown my diet completely” after one spoonful of ice cream).

Overgeneralization

Viewing a single negative event as a never-ending pattern of defeat.

Using words like “always” or “never” when a negative event occurs.

Mental Filter

Picking out a single negative detail and dwelling on it exclusively.

Like a drop of ink discoloring a beaker of water, one critical comment can darken the reality of many positive ones.

Discounting the positives

Rejecting positive experiences by insisting they “don’t count”.

Believing that doing a good job wasn’t good enough or that “anyone could have done as well”.

Jumping to conclusions

Interpreting things negatively without facts to support the conclusion.

Mind reading: Assuming people are reacting negatively to you. Fortune-telling: Predicting things will turn out badly.

Magnification or Minimization

Exaggerating problems and shortcomings or shrinking the importance of desirable qualities.

Also called the “binocular trick”.

Emotional Reasoning

Assuming negative emotions reflect the way things really are.

“I feel like an idiot, so I really must be one” or “I feel terrified… it must be dangerous to fly”.

“Should Statements”

Criticizing yourself or others with “shoulds,” “shouldn’ts,” “musts,” or “oughts”.

Directed at yourself, they lead to guilt; directed at others, they lead to anger and frustration.

Labeling

An extreme form of all-or-nothing thinking where you identify with your shortcomings.

Instead of saying “I made a mistake,” you say “I’m a loser” or “I’m a jerk”.

Personalization and Blame

Holding yourself responsible for events not entirely under your control, or blaming others while overlooking your own contributions.

A mother blaming herself for a child’s school struggle, or a spouse blaming their partner entirely for a “lousy” marriage.