12 Examples of Cognitive Distortions and How to Cope with Them
Medically reviewed by Michael MacIntyre, MD
Cognitive distortions are irrational or exaggerated ways of thinking that frequently affect people with anxiety or depression. Cognitive distortion examples include dwelling on negatives, overgeneralizing, catastrophizing situations, or characterizing things as either all good or all bad.
While it is normal to feel these things when you are in a bad mood, cognitive distortions infer a persistent way of thinking that undermines relationships and your general well-being.
The article describes 12 different types of cognitive distortions and how they present themselves. It also offers coping tips and advice on when to see a healthcare provider.
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What Are Cognitive Distortions?
Cognitive distortions are thoughts that cause you to perceive reality inaccurately. They are symptoms characterized by irrational or exaggerated thinking patterns that reinforce negative beliefs and emotions. In doing so, they perpetuate or worsen anxiety or depression.
Cognition is the process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through your thoughts, experiences, and senses. With cognitive distortion, your thoughts become twisted and you are less able to recognize things that might actually improve your mental state. In essence, you become trapped in an unhealthy mental state.
Cognitive distortions can take different forms, some of which are characteristic of mental illnesses like:
There are different types of cognitive distortions with distinct features and signs. Knowing the difference can help you identify and change problematic ways of thinking.
Polarized Thinking
Polarized thinking is when you see everything in absolutes. It is a black-and-white way of thinking in which things are either all good or all bad, and never in between. This is sometimes referred to as "splitting," a central feature of a condition called borderline personality disorder (BPD).
Example of Polarized Thinking
With polarized thinking, you may describe an acquaintance at a party as "wonderful" when they first pay you attention, but then quickly regard them as "horrible" if they turn their attention elsewhere.
Overgeneralization
Overgeneralization is when you take an isolated negative experience and turn it into a neverending pattern of loss and defeat. People who overgeneralize make very broad conclusions from a single incident and expect it to happen again and again.
People who overgeneralize focus on the negative and tend to speak in absolutes, using words like "always," "never," "everything" or "nothing."
Example of Overgeneralization
An example of overgeneralization is having one awkward job interview and declaring that you are "no good at job interviews." The negative thoughts may convince you to give up trying.
Catastrophizing
Catastrophizing is when you only see the worst outcome of a situation. Any minor mistake is horrible; any inconvenience ruins everything; and any small setback means you'll never reach your goal.
Catastrophizing is a common feature of anxiety or depression but is also frequently seen in people with chronic pain or insomnia who are unable to cope.
Example of Catastrophizing
An example of catastrophizing is running out of ice at your pool party and declaring that it "ruined it" for everyone even if no one seems to care.
Personalization
Personalization is holding yourself responsible for an act or event that is beyond your control. It could also mean that you are holding someone responsible for a situation even though it has no direct connection to them.
Personalization is about guilt and assigning blame to yourself or others.
Examples of Personalization
An example of personalization is when your child has an accident while visiting a relative in another state and you declare that it would never have happened if you didn't put the child on the plane.
Or, you could turn the situation around and say that the accident would never have happened if the relative didn't pressure the child into coming.
Filtering
Filtering is the habit of discounting or dismissing anything positive. It is about focusing on the negative and finding ways to minimize, mitigate, or refute anything positive to support your negative way of thinking.
Some might refer to this as "pessimism," but filtering is less about the world in general and more about self-defeat.
Example of Filtering
With filtering, your superior might give you a glowing job performance review but ask that you check your reports for typos before submitting them. All you take from the review is that your reports are sloppy and that you are failing.
Mind Reading
Mind reading is when you jump to conclusions without enough (or any) evidence to draw a conclusion. People who mind-read fully expect that the outcome will be bad whatever they do. This increases feelings of anxiety as they await for the proverbial ball to drop.
People who mind-read will often declare "I knew this would happen" when their predictions are correct and discount the times when their predictions are incorrect.
Example of Mind Reading
A person who mind reads might assume that a friend who hasn't returned their call the same day no longer wants to be a friend. Rather than considering other possibilities, a mind reader jumps to the worst possible conclusion.
Emotional Reasoning
With emotional reasoning, the way you feel colors how you feel about yourself. It is driven by the belief that "If I feel this way, it must be true."
Emotional reasoning allows you to turn negative feelings about an incident into a statement about yourself or others. It turns feelings into facts despite evidence to the contrary.
Examples of Emotional Reasoning
Emotional reasoning is when you feel awkward at a party and decide that you "don't fit in anywhere." Or, you may feel insecure about wearing a bikini and decide that "people think that I'm unattractive."
Labeling
Labeling is about taking a single attribute and turning it into an absolute about yourself or someone else. It's an inflexible way of thinking that allows you to take the most negative viewpoint and discount any evidence to the contrary.
People who label are usually quick to judge and tend to take extreme, negative, and largely unfair viewpoints. Once assigned, the labels are slow to change.
Examples of Labeling
A labeler may describe someone who dresses fashionably as "shallow" or someone who reads the Christian Society Monitor as "snooty," often as a snap judgment.
On the flip side, you may label yourself "stupid" if you feel inferior at a new job.
"Should" Statements
Using “should” statements declares that something should be done in a certain way without exception. It's an inflexible way of thinking that creates rules that people either adhere to or fail, including yourself.
"Should" places undue pressure or expectations on yourself and others. It also allows you to criticize others, often without any understanding of their circumstance.
Examples of "Should" Statement
With "should" statements, you can tacitly criticize others by suggesting they "should have said this" (if they were thoughtful) or "should be successful" (if they knew what they were doing). The same statements can reversed and used to criticise yourself.
Control Fallacy
Control fallacy is when you think that things out of your control are actually in your control, including other people’s behaviors or feelings. Control fallacy can also be internalized, making you feel as if you are powerless and have no control over situations.
Both situations set a person up for failure.
Examples of Control Fallacy
With control fallacy, you may fully believe that your spouse's happiness is based solely on your behaviors or actions. On the flip side, you may believe that your happiness is dependent on your spouse and that any unhappiness you feel is solely the result of your spouse's behavior or actions.
Fairness Fallacy
Fairness fallacy is believing that everything should be fair and equal, causing resentment when the world doesn't yield to what you believe is fair. It's a defeatist attitude that creates the impression that you are being treated unfairly and that others are somehow against you.
Example of Fairness Fallacy
Fairness fallacy allows you to feel as if you were cheated out of a promotion if a coworker gets it instead. Rather than considering whether the person might actually deserve it, you focus on your powerlessness and how you were conspired against.
Change Fallacy
With change fallacy, you expect others to change their behaviors to make you happy—even if the change is against their nature. It supposes that change can be made if enough pressure is exerted, placing the responsibility of happiness on others, not you.
By externalizing happiness, you set yourself up for anxiety as you struggle for change and depression if the attempt for change fails.
Examples of Change Fallacy
An example of change fallacy is pressuring your partner to stay at home even though you know they are outgoing and gregarious. When they don't yield to pressure, you feel betrayed. If they do, you are unable to grasp their unhappiness.
Coping With Cognitive Distortion
Cognitive distortions are common manifestations of anxiety and depression. Until these distortions are identified, challenged, and changed, depression or anxiety may persist.
You can often gain control over these thought patterns by looking within and exploring your feelings honestly, including those that are uncomfortable.
Here's what you can do:
Stop yourself when you are upset: Step away and let yourself calm down before trying to assess the situation.
Analyze the situation: Look at things from all perspectives. Was your upset driven by a hurtful situation or your impression of the situation? Might someone look at the situation differently?
Avoid absolutes: Things are rarely black and white. If that's how you see it, your feelings may be colored by facts that are not entirely true. Rather than digging in your heels, question your feelings.
Remove labels: Look at all parties without labels, including yourself. Whenever you see a person as one thing (such as "lazy"), you can use that as an excuse for their actions and not take an honest look at yourself.
Focus on the positive: With cognitive distortion, your instinct will be to focus on the negative. Instead, consider all of the positives, including good things about a person, good comments that were made, and good experiences you had. Don't discount or dismiss them.
Weigh the evidence: Question whether your feelings or attitude align with the situation after you've taken a step back. Find where your views may have been colored and changes you can make to correct them.
When to See a Healthcare Provider
If you can't control your feelings and find yourself struggling at work or with relationships, it may be time to see a therapist. Certain therapies can be used to collaboratively address problematic thinking patterns.
Chief among these is cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). This is a form of talk therapy that helps you identify unhealthy patterns of thinking so that you can replace them with healthy ones. Unlike some other forms of talk therapy, CBT deals with your current problems rather than focusing on issues from the past.
By doing so, CBT can help adjust behaviors in a structured and practical way and allow you to assess situations in a more balanced way.
Summary
Cognitive distortions are ways of thinking that are often habitual, negative, and not rooted in fact. They can become more ingrained over time. With therapy, particularly CBT, it is possible to examine, dismantle, and reframe your thought process and break free from cognitive distortions.
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