Cognitive Triangle

What is the Cognitive Triangle?

The cognitive triangle is a model used in cognitive therapy and behavioral therapy. It describes the relationship between a person's thoughts, feelings, and actions, and how these three affect one another.

The cognitive triangle illustrates how our thoughts change the way we feel, which in turn affects our actions. For example, if you're stuck in an airport and your flight is delayed, you might think "This always happens to me! All I've been doing today is waiting for this plane." This can lead you to feel angry or frustrated. Your frustration might lead you to act passively—perhaps by slumping in your seat scrolling through your phone.

On the other hand, if you were able to see the delay from a different perspective—say, "I'm stuck in this airport because I chose to travel somewhere new and exciting!"—your mood might improve. You might be more optimistic about getting where you're going and take advantage of the time by reading a book or chatting with other passengers.

We all have our own way of seeing the world. Some people are more likely to think things will work out, while others tend to be more pessimistic and expect the worst. These differences in attitude can affect how we perceive events, as well as how we react to them.

Our thoughts, feelings and behaviors form what's known as a cognitive triangle. When one area changes, the other two are affected too. We might think positive thoughts (about ourselves and others) when feeling happy or relaxed – but if something goes wrong then those thoughts become negative ones such as self-blame or blaming others for what has happened. Cognitive therapy aims to change this pattern by changing how you think about yourself and situations around you in stress moments so that your actions are different too!

Thoughts

"Thought" is your internal monologue—the voice inside your head that tells you that you're not good enough, or that you're too much. It's the voice that tells you what to do and how to feel. It can be kind and gentle or harsh and aggressive. But here's the thing: it's just a voice, and it doesn't have to be right. In fact, it often isn't! Your thoughts are shaped by your feelings—and they shape your feelings in turn.

Thoughts are the things that pop into our heads when we're thinking about something. They're the ideas we have—the memories and the concepts that go through our minds. They can be conscious or unconscious. When our thoughts become conscious—when we think about them and make decisions on purpose—they dictate our actions and behaviors, which is how we move through life and interact with the world around us. But not everything is a conscious thought. We also have unconscious thoughts—things that pop into our heads without us noticing them happening or choosing to think about them. These can be just as important to who we are as people and how we act as any other thought, but usually we don't notice them. That's okay! You can still harness the power of these thoughts to change your behavior in a positive way.

Feelings

Feelings are the result of complex interactions between the mind and the body. These interactions often involve changes in brain activity and in physiological processes such as blood pressure and heart rate. Most psychologists recognize at least four broad classes of feelings: pleasant feelings, unpleasant feelings, neutral feelings, and mixed feelings.

All feelings fit into a few categories: joy, sadness, anger, fear, love, guilt, shame, disgust. We experience these feelings because our brains tell us to—but we also need our bodies to experience them. These feelings are often related to hormones like oxytocin (love) or cortisol (fear).

Emotions can be seen as the automatic responses we have to external stimuli. We learn to do this after being rewarded or punished for certain actions or behaviors as children. For example, if a child gets a pat on the head when she gives her mom a hug, she will learn to associate feelings of love with the action of hugging. If another child gets yelled at for kissing a stranger, he will learn that kissing leads to negative feelings such as fear or anxiety.

The implications of this are huge! It means that we can all train ourselves to feel whatever we want, which is fantastic news for people who struggle with feeling good about themselves! If you've ever heard someone say "I'm just not the type of person who feels entitled to things," or "I don't think I'll ever get over my fear of heights," these ideas show us that it is possible to retrain your brain and your feelings around these issues in particular and more general

Most people aren't taught about feelings, or about emotions, or about cognitive processes like perception. They're not taught how to BE a human being.
Dr. Betty Williams, a psychologist specialized in stress and depression, says that acknowledging your feelings is important.

"When you feel something, acknowledge it. Denying a feeling doesn't make it go away; it just makes you more stressed."

Dr. Williams suggests that you take the time to identify what you're feeling and when the feeling started. Once you have identified those things, try to figure out why you feel the way you do and how your behavior might be contributing to your feelings.

Once you have done all of these things, try to come up with ways to change how you feel or how you behave so that your negative feelings can be reduced or eliminated.

BEHAVIOR

Behaviors are how you physically act on your thoughts and feelings. Behaviors are your actions, both internal and external—the things you do after you think or feel something. Behavior is the way you act and carry yourself. It’s the choices you make in your day-to-day life, and how you respond to situations around you.

You may notice that your behavior changes depending on who you’re with and what environment you’re in. For example, you might be more outgoing with a group of friends than strangers. Your behavior is influenced by your thoughts and feelings. When you feel down, for example, your behavior may be less energetic, and it may take more effort to get things done.

Behavior is what you do. It’s a broad term that encompasses everything from the tiniest squint of your eye to the way you carry yourself in a room full of strangers. When it comes to social interactions, we place a lot of emphasis on the way people behave, and our perception of their behavior.

Here are 5 interesting facts about behavior:

1. Behavior is the glue that holds relationships together.

2. Behavior is infectious.

3. Your body language affects how others see you, but it may also change how you see yourself.

4. Behavior is influenced by your environment and your cultural background, among other things.

5. We don’t always behave in accordance with our beliefs or values, which means that our behavior isn’t always a good indicator of who we are or what we stand for as individuals

All cognitive triangle of thoughts and feelings are the result of conscious or unconscious brain processes, which we cannot control. The same is true of emotions, attitudes and behaviors.

However, we can change our reactions to situations. By doing so, we can reduce stress and anxiety, improve self-esteem and self-confidence, improve relationships with others and increase our sense of well-being.

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