Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy
Encyclopedia
Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy is a book written by David D. Burns
, first published in 1980, that popularized cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT).
The book has sold over four million copies in the United States
, and has also been published in Argentina
, Australia
, Austria
, Canada
, China
, France
, Germany
, India
, Indonesia
, Iran
, Israel
, Japan
, Korea
, Mexico
, Norway
, Poland
, Portugal
, Spain
, Yugoslavia
and many other countries. It was named one of the top ten behavioral science books of 1980 by the journal Behavioral Medicine, while according to The Authoritative Guide to Self-Help Books (New York: Guilford Press, 1994) it is the book most frequently recommended for depressed patients by mental health professionals in the United States. It was also rated the top self-help book for depressed individuals, based on a national survey of more than 500 mental health professionals’ evaluations of 1,000 self-help books. Burns's The Feeling Good Handbook
was rated #2 in the survey.
Weak evidence suggests that bibliotherapy
based on cognitive behavioral therapy will help some people when they receive some additional guidance.
Feeling Good has been studied in its use in self-directed bibliotherapy
for depression. One study of older adults with mild to moderate depression found that reading this book, with brief intermittent phone check-in sessions, was an effective treatment for depression.
Feeling Good grew out of dissatisfaction with conventional Freudian treatment of depression. Burns’s mentor, Dr. Aaron T. Beck
(considered the "father" of cognitive therapy
; Dr. Albert Ellis is considered the "grandfather"), concluded that there was no empirical evidence for the success of Freudian psychoanalysis in treating depressed people. The idea that negative feelings such as depression and anxiety are triggered by our thoughts or perceptions has a long history, dating back to the Greek philosopher Epictetus
, who said that people are disturbed not by things but by the way we think about them.
In her text on Cognitive Therapy, Beck's daughter Judith S. Beck
calls this a "layman's book". Brigid Philip says that the book encourages its readers to regulate themselves according to liberal virtues which stifles "debate about depression, disavowing the socio-political context in which individuals become depressed, and promoting a model of 'active citizenship' that limits how individuality can be expressed".
David D. Burns
David D. Burns is an adjunct professor emeritus in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Stanford University School of Medicine and the author of the best-selling book Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy. Burns popularized cognitive behavioral therapy when his book became a...
, first published in 1980, that popularized cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT).
The book has sold over four million copies in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, and has also been published in Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
and many other countries. It was named one of the top ten behavioral science books of 1980 by the journal Behavioral Medicine, while according to The Authoritative Guide to Self-Help Books (New York: Guilford Press, 1994) it is the book most frequently recommended for depressed patients by mental health professionals in the United States. It was also rated the top self-help book for depressed individuals, based on a national survey of more than 500 mental health professionals’ evaluations of 1,000 self-help books. Burns's The Feeling Good Handbook
The Feeling Good Handbook
The Feeling Good Handbook is a book written by David D. Burns, M.D. and originally published in 1989. It introduces principles of cognitive psychology which can be applied in efforts to change a person's mood. It covers many aspects of communication skills and cognitive distortions...
was rated #2 in the survey.
Weak evidence suggests that bibliotherapy
Bibliotherapy
Bibliotherapy is an expressive therapy that uses an individual's relationship to the content of books and poetry and other written words as therapy. Bibliotherapy is often combined with writing therapy. Bibliotherapy has been shown to be effective in the treatment of depression...
based on cognitive behavioral therapy will help some people when they receive some additional guidance.
Feeling Good has been studied in its use in self-directed bibliotherapy
Bibliotherapy
Bibliotherapy is an expressive therapy that uses an individual's relationship to the content of books and poetry and other written words as therapy. Bibliotherapy is often combined with writing therapy. Bibliotherapy has been shown to be effective in the treatment of depression...
for depression. One study of older adults with mild to moderate depression found that reading this book, with brief intermittent phone check-in sessions, was an effective treatment for depression.
Feeling Good grew out of dissatisfaction with conventional Freudian treatment of depression. Burns’s mentor, Dr. Aaron T. Beck
Aaron T. Beck
Aaron Temkin Beck is an American psychiatrist and a professor emeritus in the department of psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania. He is widely regarded as the father of cognitive therapy, and his pioneering theories are widely used in the treatment of clinical depression...
(considered the "father" of cognitive therapy
Cognitive therapy
Cognitive behavioral therapy is a psychotherapeutic approach: a talking therapy. CBT aims to solve problems concerning dysfunctional emotions, behaviors and cognitions through a goal-oriented, systematic procedure in the present...
; Dr. Albert Ellis is considered the "grandfather"), concluded that there was no empirical evidence for the success of Freudian psychoanalysis in treating depressed people. The idea that negative feelings such as depression and anxiety are triggered by our thoughts or perceptions has a long history, dating back to the Greek philosopher Epictetus
Epictetus
Epictetus was a Greek sage and Stoic philosopher. He was born a slave at Hierapolis, Phrygia , and lived in Rome until banishment when he went to Nicopolis in northwestern Greece where he lived the rest of his life. His teachings were noted down and published by his pupil Arrian in his Discourses...
, who said that people are disturbed not by things but by the way we think about them.
In her text on Cognitive Therapy, Beck's daughter Judith S. Beck
Judith S. Beck
Judith S. Beck, Ph.D., is an American psychologist who is best known for her work in cognitive therapy. Her father is Aaron T...
calls this a "layman's book". Brigid Philip says that the book encourages its readers to regulate themselves according to liberal virtues which stifles "debate about depression, disavowing the socio-political context in which individuals become depressed, and promoting a model of 'active citizenship' that limits how individuality can be expressed".