ABSTRACT
Case conceptualization, also known as case formulation, is one of the most important aspects of Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT). It is defined by Kuyken, Fothergill, Musa, and Chadwick as the description of a patient's presenting problems that uses cognitive-behavioral theory to make explanatory inferences about causes and maintaining factors, to inform interventions. The Trial-Based Cognitive Therapy (TBCT) case conceptualization diagram might also help the patient understand that situation-specific behaviors that elicit less anxiety and produce immediate relief are gradually transformed into coping strategies, sometimes also called safety-seeking behaviors. TBCT case conceptualization discusses case conceptualization diagram (CCD) and its 3-level cognitive components: automatic thoughts (ATs), underlying assumptions (UAs), and core beliefs (CBs). Several TBCT tools were developed to help patients identify and change ATs by replacing them with new and more functional alternative appraisals. By doing this, the patient may gradually notice changes in the other levels of information processing.
