Emotion,
Cognition and
Behavior: The
Interplay
Mentoring
CPD & Supervision
Emotion
• Is a mental and physiological
state associated with a wide
variety of feelings, thoughts
and behaviours. It is a prime
detriment of subjective wellbeing and appears to play a
central role in most human
activities (Wikipedia, 2009)
– Feeling – conscious, subjective
experience of emotion
– Thought – is a higher cognitive
function which allows human to
model the world and deal with it
accordingly – it allows us to
consider how to behave
– Behaviour – is action or reaction
to environment and can be
conscious, unconscious overt,
covert, voluntary or involuntary
Cognitive
Behavioural Therapy
• How we behave reflects
how we think about
situations.
• How we feel about
something has an impact on
what we think and visa
versa
• How we feel affects our
behaviour
• Anxiety
– Is what we feel when we
perceive we are under threat
or that we are able to come
with a threatening situation.
Exercise One
• Aim – to identify
aspects of
anxious thought,
feelings and
behaviours
– Identify a
‘stressor’ – ie
giving a
presentation
– Draw a ‘spider’
chart for
behaviours you
demonstrate
when you are
stressed
– Draw a ‘spider’
chart for
thoughts you
have when you
are stressed
– Draw a ‘spider’
chart for
feelings you have
when you are
stressed
I’ll have no
money
If I get into
Debt, I will
loose my
house
I will not be
able to pay
my bills
I need a job
I will be a
Failure if I
Get into debt
I will get into
debt
Getting into
Debt is bad
Exercise Two
• Aim: To help you make links
between thoughts, feelings
and behaviours
– Working in pairs, using your
favourite system, tool or
technique, to help your
mentee understand how their
thoughts, feelings and
behaviours interact.
Encourage exploration
– Explore what your mentee
might do to reduce their
stress or anxiety. What
thought might you challenge
and what behaviours might
your mentee wish to change
to help with their feelings?
Exercise Three
• Behavioural relaxation
techniques
– Breathing out stress/anxiety
• Taking a deep breath, imagine the
situation that makes you anxious.
Allow the feelings to rise in you.
Blow out the breath imaging your
stress reducing as you release the
breath
– Relaxation
• Sit comfortably. Take three deep
breath and breath out slowly,
relaxing with each breath. Move
slowly from the top of your head
to your toes, relaxing each muscle
in your body as you bring them to
mind. Do this slowly and repeat
until you feel relaxed.