Examination of the core cognitive components of cognitive behavioral therapy and acceptance and commitment therapy: an analogue investigation.

We aimed to examine the core elements of cognitive behavioral therapy and acceptance and commitment therapy that target distressing negative cognitions, cognitive restructuring (CR) and cognitive defusion (CD), respectively. Participants (N=142) recalled a saddening autobiographical event, identified a distressing thought it triggered, and completed a task that induced rumination on these cognitions. They then completed one of four brief interventions that targeted these emotionally charged cognitions: analogue versions of CR and CD, and two control interventions.