ABSTRACT
REBT is unique among the cognitive-behavioural therapies in distinguishing between emotions that are negative in tone, but largely healthy in effect and emotions that are negative in tone and largely unhealthy in effect. The former are known as healthy negative emotions (HNEs) while the latter are known as unhealthy negative emotions (UNEs). Unfortunately, we do not have good words in the English language for UNEs and HNEs and thus, different REBT theorists have used different lexicons in this respect. My own (e.g. Dryden, 2002) is as follows:
REBT's distinction between UNEs and HNEs follows logically from REBT's position on the difference between irrational (i.e. rigid and extreme) beliefs and rational (i.e. ¯exible and nonextreme) beliefs. On the latter difference, REBT theory holds that rational and irrational beliefs are qualitatively different. This means that while a person holds a rational belief about an adversity, it is not possible for that person to hold an irrational belief about that adversity and vice versa. Now, according to
REBT theory, it is possible for a person to hold a about a negative activating event and the very an irrational belief about that same event, but the contemporaneous holding of a rational belief with its irrational belief counterpart is not possible.
