Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) incorporates strategies to promote acceptance and a focus on living a life according to one’s values. It often serves as a complementary framework to the heavily changed-focused strategies that comprise traditional CBT. Providers who deliver ACT help clients to distance (or become defused from) upsetting or unhelpful thoughts, rather than changing them. They also help their clients to clarify their most important personal values and identify ways to behavior in a way that is consistent with one’s values. These strategies are delivered to promote psychological flexibility, or the adoption of a cognitive behavioral stance that is effective in light of the demands of any given situation.
You can read more about ACT from the following sources:
- From the Association of Contextual Behavioral Science: https://contextualscience.org/act/
- From the website of our esteemed colleague Russ Harris: https://www.actmindfully.com.au/about-act/