What is the goal of cognitive therapy?

• A. To maintain all existing beliefs.
• B. To modify inaccurate or negative beliefs and improve biased information processing.
• C. To focus on past traumas only.
• D. To increase distress tolerance.

Answer: (B)

Cognitive therapy aims to change the way you think. It focuses on identifying distorted or negative beliefs and the biased ways you process information, then testing and revising those thoughts to be more realistic and helpful. By rewiring these cognitions, emotions and behaviors shift in a healthier direction because you’re interpreting situations in a less biased, more balanced way. This is why modifying inaccurate or negative beliefs and improving biased information processing is the best description of the goal.

The other ideas miss the central focus: simply maintaining beliefs preserves distortions; concentrating only on past traumas aligns more with psychodynamic approaches than with cognitive therapy; and increasing distress tolerance is a coping skill set used in other modalities, not the primary aim of cognitive therapy.