Cognitive Subsystems Model Research Articles

A case for somatic practices as embodied mindfulness

Presenting convergences between mindfulness and somatic practices, this article makes a case for somatic practices as embodied mindfulness. It discusses historical origins as well as brief comments supporting some shared value systems and qualities espoused in both practices. After giving an overview of embodied cognition theory and the Interacting Cognitive Subsystems model, I trace how developing expertise in both somatic and mindfulness practices create the same cognitive repatterning to support the argument that somatics is a field of embodied mindfulness practices.

The Perils of Being Porous: A Psychological View of Spirit Possession and Non-dogmatic Ways of Helping

SYNOPSISThe Conference on Spirit Possession and Mental Health, organized by the Ethnic Health Initiative in London, September 2013, introduced the dilemma of the practitioner of Western medicine, faced with a predominantly ethnic-minority client group with a culturally and religiously sanctioned attribution of certain mental health difficulties to possession by spirits (or Jinns in Islamic terminology). Working with traditional healers is a possible solution, but is complicated by the heterogeneity and lack of regulation of this body. By questioning the assumptions behind the Western scientific world-view regarding the impermeability of the human mind, this paper presents a model of the human being that can accommodate the reality of extraneous invasion. Based on the Interacting Cognitive Subsystems model of cognitive architecture (Teasdale and Barnard, 1995), it is possible to argue that we have the capacity in certain susceptible states of mind to step away from our individuality into such a place of vulnerability. Schizotypy research (Claridge, 1997) has explored this potential. A therapeutic approach that honours the individual's experience, based on this re-conceptualization, is presented.

The use of poetry in the construction of meaning in cognitive behavioural psychotherapy and mental health studies

PurposeThis paper is a shared endeavour between client (Caroline) and therapist (Anne) which aims to examine the use of poetry in the construction of meaning in Cognitive Behavioural Psychotherapy (CBP).Design/methodology/approachThe paper is a narrative account of the early stages of therapy and the role poetry played in developing an effective therapeutic relationship and in shaping the CBP formulation, which guides treatment. The text is illustrated with examples of poetry and song lyrics that have been used to construct meaning in the therapy and the authors' own reflections on this process. The paper begins with a brief outline of the theoretical principles of CBP and then moves on to discuss the use of metaphor as part of the therapy and its role in the development of a productive therapeutic relationship.FindingsThe paper provides a reflective narrative from the perspective of client and therapist and invites the reader to consider making links between the science of evidence based practice and the artistry necessary and inherent to the practice of CBP.Originality/valueThe interacting cognitive subsystems model (Teasdale and Barnard, 1993) from cognitive science is introduced as a theoretical rationale to provide an account of the efficacy and effectiveness of poetry in this context. This is the first time an evidence based theory from cognitive science has been used as the basis for an account of the utility of poetry in constructing meaning in CBP.

Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Depression: Effectiveness and Limitations

Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) was developed by Segal, Williams, and Teasdale (2002) as a therapy for relapse prevention of major depression. The 8-week group-based program combines Kabat-Zinn's (1990) mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) with components of Beck's (Beck, Rush, Shaw, & Emery, 1979) cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). It is increasingly being offered by social workers worldwide. MBCT is based on an interacting cognitive subsystems model (ICS) replacing Beck's schema model. This new model represents the largest shift in the approach to major depression for social work in the past two decades. However, social work has been slow to incorporate it into its research agenda. In practice, MBCT teaches patients who are in remission from depression to become aware of, and relate differently to, their thoughts, feelings, and bodily sensations. This is a shift from CBT's schema theory that focused primarily on the content of thoughts and beliefs. A few reviews of MBCT research exist (Coelho, Canter & Ernst, 2007), but there has been no review of the mechanics of MBCT and how it addresses the cognitive patterns or metacognition and processes of major depression. There is no review of its use within the social work literature. This article discusses the mechanisms of MBCT in relation to the components of depression relapse/reoccurrence and reviews the literature regarding the effectiveness of MBCT. We found that MBCT has the potential to positively contribute to interventions directed at relapse prevention for patients with a history of depression.

A test of the interacting cognitive subsystems model using a laboratory analogue of depressive interlock

AbstractThe interacting cognitive subsystems (ICS) model has been described as a useful framework within which to understand a wide variety of psychological phenomena. There is now a small literature of studies that have found support for many of the model's basic features. One feature that has not been studied is depressive interlock, described as uncontrollable, repetitious processing of negative themes. To further test some of the predictions derived from ICS, we compared a group of clinically depressed participants with a non‐depressed control group, using a specially designed cognitive task to examine the effects of emotional tone of stimuli on information processing. Results indicated that depression (but not euthymia) is characterized by perseverative responding for both positively and negatively emotionally toned self‐related material, but not for similar neutral material. This result is suggested as further empirical support for the ICS framework. Copyright © John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

An interacting cognitive subsystems approach to personality disorder

AbstractPersonality disorder is defined as an enduring pattern of problems with cognition, emotional regulation and behaviour. Personality disorder is a common problem, but also a serious challenge for mental health services. A theoretical psychological model of personality disorder that is based on a scientific understanding of the architecture of cognition would provide a logical basis for treatment and further study. This paper proposes that the interacting cognitive subsystems model of a distributed architecture for human cognition can provide a theoretical account of personality disorder. Two inherent aspects of the ICS model, ‘non‐discriminative processing’ and ‘interlock’, are discussed. Non‐discriminative processing occurs when novel material is recognized as discrepant with existing expectations, but does not lead to a modification of existing representational schemata. Interlock refers to a situation where the unchanged output of subsystem processing is used as the input for another subsystem in a feedback loop. It is hypothesized that these two processes, together with abnormal content of the implicational representational schema, can explain the rigidity and maladaptive nature of cognitive schemata that are themselves believed to lead to the clinical features of personality disorder. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Psychological approaches to bipolar disorders: A theoretical critique

An outline is presented of five main psychological models of the bipolar disorders. These approaches include the Behavioural Activation/Inhibition Systems model, the Cognitive Therapy model, the Interpersonal and Social Rhythm Therapy model, the Interacting Cognitive Subsystems model, and the SPAARS model. Strengths and weaknesses are highlighted for each approach. It is concluded that although there is no model that can adequately account for even the key features of the bipolar disorders (such as periodicity, shifts in the valence of the self-concept, mixed affective states, and patterns of recovery and relapse), nevertheless, more recently developed multi-level approaches to emotion offer more sophisticated possibilities for modeling these complex disorders.

Recollection deficits in dysphoric mood: An effect of schematic models and executive mode?

Depression and dysphoric mood states are often accompanied by quantitative or qualitative shifts in performance across a range of retention tasks. This study focuses on the recollection of both autobiographical events and word lists in dysphoric states. Recollection occurs when people are aware of some contextual detail allied to the encoding experience. This study establishes the presence of a recollection deficit in dysphoria in two distinct paradigms. In both autobiographical recall and in recognition memory, recollection in a dysphoric group was at lower levels than recollection in matched controls. The study examines the hypothesis that the extent of recollection is influenced by two factors: (1) the degree of differentiation of schematic mental models; and (2) the executive mode that predominates when memory tasks are carried out, with the latter assumed to be altered by rumination. The relationship between responses based on recollection and alternative mnemonic responses could be predicted by measures of these two factors. The results are discussed in terms of the Interacting Cognitive Subsystems model (Teasdale & Barnard, 1993) and the perspective it offers on the relationship between meaning systems and executive functions (Barnard, 1999).

Bridging between basic theory and clinical practice

This paper articulates and discusses the parts played by different processes and representations in the overall conduct of applied clinical science. It distinguishes two sorts of representation, theories in the science base and bridging representations needed to map from real world behaviour to basic theory and from theory back to the real world. It is then argued that macro-theories of the “normal” human mental architecture could help synthesise basic theoretical accounts of diverse psychopathologies, without recourse to special purpose clinical cognitive theories of particular psychopathologies or even specific symptoms. Using the Interacting Cognitive Subsystems model [Affect, Cognition and Change: Re-modelling Depressive Thought, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Hove, 1993], some specific macro-theoretic variables are identified. Concrete illustrations are given of how the essence of quite complex basic theory can be translated into a simpler representational format to help clinicians conceptualise a psychopathological state and pinpoint relevant variables that might be changed by therapeutic interventions. Some suggestions are also offered about how the inevitable problem of complexity in multiple component theories might be directly confronted.

Introducing further developments towards an ICS formulation of psychosis: a comment on Gumley et al. (1999) An interacting cognitive subsystems model of relapse and the course of psychosis

Introducing further developments towards an ICS formulation of psychosis: a comment on Gumley et al. (1999) An interacting cognitive subsystems model of relapse and the course of psychosis

Introducing further developments towards an ICS formulation of psychosis: a comment on Gumley et al. (1999) An interacting cognitive subsystems model of relapse and the course of psychosis

Introducing further developments towards an ICS formulation of psychosis: a comment on Gumley et al. (1999) An interacting cognitive subsystems model of relapse and the course of psychosis

Therapeutic implications of the interactive cognitive sub-systems (ICS) model for people with dementia

Recent theories of emotion inform us that therapists have too often focused exclusively on language and conscious cognitions as the mediating processes in producing effective change. This paper uses Teasdale’s Interactive Cognitive Sub-systems model (ICS) to account for the benefits often observed in approaches that do not focus mainly on language-based methods. It discusses the value of physical interventions (dance, exercise) and sensory therapies (massage, aromatherapy), explaining their mediating affects in terms of Teasdale’s ICS model.The work discusses the model in terms of interventions for people with dementia, however, the discussion is applicable to many fields and disorders. Nevertheless, owing to the communication problems often observed in people with dementia, the work has particular relevance for those with aphasia and communication difficulties.

An interacting cognitive subsystems model of relapse and the course of psychosis

This paper outlines a theoretical analysis of current psychological conceptualizations of psychosis that draws on Teasdale and Barnard's (1993) Interacting Cognitive Subsystems (ICS) model of depression. The ICS model differs from Beck et al.'s (1979) model of emotional disorders in that it specifies two qualitatively different levels of meaning. These different levels of meaning play a different role in the production, maintenance and modification of emotion, and indeed, also recognize the distinction between ‘intellectual' belief and ‘emotional' belief. Intellectual beliefs are at the level of specific propositional meaning: they have a truth value which can be assessed and they are not directly influenced by sensory information such as voice tone, arousal and body state, or visual stimuli. Given this, propositional meaning does not have a direct link to the production of emotion. Rather the link to emotion is an indirect one, through the activation of more generic and holistic affect-related schematic models. These latter schematic models are hypothesized to have implicational meaning, and correspond to schematic models derived from emotive experiences. In consequence they do not have a specific truth-value and they reflect contributions from a wide variety of sources, including multiple patterns of specific meanings, and patterns of direct sensory input. This ICS perspective proposes that integration of these two levels of meaning can facilitate the psychological conceptualization of the initiation, acceleration, and maintenance of positive psychotic symptomatology during relapse. This theoretical analysis is illustrated by the use of a case study, which describes the process and application of ICS to facilitating recovery from acute psychosis. This paper also provides a detailed discussion of the implications of this analysis for future research and psychological therapy. In particular, ICS has relevance for tracing the evolution of schematic beliefs during the early episodes of psychosis, which are hypothesized to have a bearing on the future course of psychosis. This has implications for the further development and expansion of psychological treatments for relapse and recovery from psychosis. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

An interacting cognitive subsystems model of relapse and the course of psychosis

This paper outlines a theoretical analysis of current psychological conceptualizations of psychosis that draws on Teasdale and Barnard's (1993) Interacting Cognitive Subsystems (ICS) model of depression. The ICS model differs from Beck et al.'s (1979) model of emotional disorders in that it specifies two qualitatively different levels of meaning. These different levels of meaning play a different role in the production, maintenance and modification of emotion, and indeed, also recognize the distinction between ‘intellectual' belief and ‘emotional' belief. Intellectual beliefs are at the level of specific propositional meaning: they have a truth value which can be assessed and they are not directly influenced by sensory information such as voice tone, arousal and body state, or visual stimuli. Given this, propositional meaning does not have a direct link to the production of emotion. Rather the link to emotion is an indirect one, through the activation of more generic and holistic affect-related schematic models. These latter schematic models are hypothesized to have implicational meaning, and correspond to schematic models derived from emotive experiences. In consequence they do not have a specific truth-value and they reflect contributions from a wide variety of sources, including multiple patterns of specific meanings, and patterns of direct sensory input. This ICS perspective proposes that integration of these two levels of meaning can facilitate the psychological conceptualization of the initiation, acceleration, and maintenance of positive psychotic symptomatology during relapse. This theoretical analysis is illustrated by the use of a case study, which describes the process and application of ICS to facilitating recovery from acute psychosis. This paper also provides a detailed discussion of the implications of this analysis for future research and psychological therapy. In particular, ICS has relevance for tracing the evolution of schematic beliefs during the early episodes of psychosis, which are hypothesized to have a bearing on the future course of psychosis. This has implications for the further development and expansion of psychological treatments for relapse and recovery from psychosis. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Analysing Cognitive Behaviour using LOTOS and Mexitl

Abstract. We argue that cognitive models should be used in analysing the usability of multi-modal human computer interfaces and further, that formal methods can be advantageously applied to such analysis. In pursuing this objective we specify the Interacting Cognitive Subsystems model formally using the process calculus LOTOS and then we verify that it satisfies certain behavioural goals formulated in the interval temporal logic Mexitl.