Article
Article
Dialectical behavior therapy
Article By:
Cameron, Amy Yule Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Warren Alpert Medical School, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island.
Last reviewed:May 2020
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.190550
Show previous versions
- Dialectical behavior therapy, published December 2014:Download PDF
Get Adobe Acrobat Reader
A form of cognitive-behavioral therapy. Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) is a psychotherapy developed by psychologist Marsha M. Linehan in the 1990s and designed originally to treat borderline personality disorder (BPD). DBT derives from a cognitive-behavioral theoretical foundation and uses four main behavior-change strategies: skills training, exposure therapy, cognitive therapy, and contingency management. Through behavioral theory, DBT focuses on increasing skills to process emotions, solve problems, understand the functions of behaviors, and change contingency patterns (see illustration). Balancing acceptance and change in DBT is thought to create a therapeutic dynamic in which patients feel understood and accepted and can work toward changing their behavior. See also: Affective disorders; Cognition; Cognitive-behavioral therapy; Emotion; Mental disorders; Psychology; Psychotherapy
The content above is only an excerpt.
About AccessScience
AccessScience provides the most accurate and trustworthy scientific information available.
Recognized as an award-winning gateway to scientific knowledge, AccessScience is an amazing online resource that contains high-quality reference material written specifically for students. Contributors include more than 10,000 highly qualified scientists and 46 Nobel Prize winners.
MORE THAN 8700 articles covering all major scientific disciplines and encompassing the McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science & Technology and McGraw-Hill Yearbook of Science & Technology
115,000-PLUS definitions from the McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms
3000 biographies of notable scientific figures
MORE THAN 19,000 downloadable images and animations illustrating key topics
ENGAGING VIDEOS highlighting the life and work of award-winning scientists
SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER STUDY and additional readings to guide students to deeper understanding and research
LINKS TO CITABLE LITERATURE help students expand their knowledge using primary sources of information
