COURSE NUMBER: PP8010
COURSE NAME: Cognitive Behavioral Theory/Therapy
TERM: Fall 2007
INSTRUCTOR:
Nan Rothrock, PhD
PHONE:
(773) 540-2712
EMAIL:
nanrothrock@yahoo.com
FAX:
(847) 570-8019
ALT PHONE:
(773) 334-0920
REQUIRED TEXTS:
Title
Author(s)
Copyright
Publisher
ISBN
Edition
Cognitive Theory: Basics & Beyond
Beck, J.S.
1995
Guilford Press
0-89862-847-4
Title
Author(s)
Copyright
Publisher
ISBN
Edition
Clinical Behavior Therapy
Goldfried, M.R. & Davidson, G.C.
1994
Wiley & Sons
0-471-07633-3
“Expanded Edition”
Title
Skills Training Manual for Treating Borderline Personality
Disorder
Author(s) Linehan, M
Copyright 1993
Publisher Guilford Press
ISBN
0-89862-034-1
Edition
This Course Requires the Purchase of a Course Packet:
YES
NO
Argosy University
COURSE SYLLABUS
PP8010
Cognitive Behavioral Theory/Therapy
Fall 2007, Wednesdays 6;00 to 8:45pm
Faculty Information
Faculty Name:
Nan Rothrock, PhD
Campus:
Chicago
Contact Information:
nanrothrock@yahoo.com; (773) 540-2712
Office Hours:
by appointment
Short Faculty Bio
Dr. Rothrock is a clinical health psychologist with an interest in adjustment to chronic
illness and quality of life. She received her doctorate from the University of Iowa. After
completing a clinical internship at the University of Chicago Medical Center, she trained
as the Harris Postdoctoral Fellow in Psychosocial Oncology at Evanston Northwestern
Healthcare. She is currently a research scientist at the Center on Outcomes, Research,
and Education at Evanston Northwestern Healthcare. Her work focuses on symptom
monitoring and management in advanced cancer, cancer screening behavior, and
measurement of quality of life. Her clinical interests are in adjustment to chronic illness,
particularly cancer.
Course description:
This course is a basic theory and intervention course that presents the major concepts and
applications of cognitive behavior theories. The curriculum will focus on mastering behavioral
and cognitive theory, learning to apply the theory to clinical cases, and introduce interventions.
After taking this course, students should feel competent to conduct a CBT
Course Pre-requisites: None
Required Textbook:
Beck, J.S. (1995). Cognitive Theory: Basics & Beyond. New York: Guilford. ISBN: 0-89862847-4.
Goldfried, M.R. & Davidson, G.C. (1994). Clinical Behavior Therapy. New York. Wiley &
Sons. ISBN: 0-471-07633-3.
Linehan, M. (1993). Skills Training Manual for Treating Borderline Personality Disorder. New
York: Guilford Press. ISBN: 0-89862-034-1.
:
Technology: Pentium III CPU/ Windows 98; 128MB RAM printer; Microsoft Office: Acrobat
(full version); Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.5 (PC), 5.0 (MAC), or Netscape Navigator 4.08;
Norton Antivirus.
Course length: 15 Weeks
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Contact Hours: 45 Hours
Credit Value: 3.0
Program Outcomes: The Doctoral program in Clinical Psychology at Argosy University
Chicago Campus is an APA accredited program (APA, 750 First St. NE, Washington, DC
20002, 202-336-5500). This program is designed to educate and train students so that they may
eventually be able to function effectively as clinical psychologists. To ensure that students are
prepared adequately, the curriculum provides for the meaningful integration of theory, training
and practice. The Clinical Psychology program at Argosy University Chicago Campus
emphasizes the development of attitudes, knowledge, and skills essential in the formation of
professional psychologists who are committed to the ethical provision of quality services.
Specific objectives of the program include the following:
 Goal 1: Prepare professional psychologists to accurately, effectively, and ethically select,
administer, score, interpret, and communicate findings of appropriate assessment
methods informed by accepted psychometric standards and sensitive to the diverse
characteristics and needs of clients.



o Objective 1a: Accurately and ethically administer and score various
psychodiagnostic instruments.
o Objective 1b: Accurately interpret and synthesize assessment data in the context
of diversity factors, referral questions, and specific objectives of the assessment,
and organize and communicate results in writing and orally.
o Objective 1c: Examine psychometric properties of psychological assessment
instruments, and use that knowledge to evaluate, select, administer, and interpret
psychological tests and measures appropriate for the client, the referral question,
and the objectives of the assessment.
Goal 2: Prepare professional psychologists to select, implement, and evaluate
psychological interventions consistent with current ethical, evidence-based, and
professional standards, within a theoretical framework, and with sensitivity to the
interpersonal processes of the therapeutic relationship and the diverse characteristics and
needs of clients.
o Objective 2a: Synthesize the foundations of clinical psychology, including
psychopathology, human development, diagnosis, diversity, ethics, and various
therapeutic models in clinical applications.
o Objective 2b: Select, plan, and implement ethical and evidence-based
interventions with sensitivity to the diverse characteristics and needs of clients.
o Objective 2c: Demonstrate knowledge, skills, and attitudes to effectively
implement and participate in psychological consultation and supervision.
Objective 2d: Demonstrate personal development and self-reflective capacity,
including growth of interpersonal skills, and therapeutic relationships.
Goal 3: Prepare professional psychologists to analyze the complexity and
multidimensionality of human diversity, and demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and
attitudes necessary to understand diverse worldviews and the potential meaning of social,
cultural, and individual differences for professional psychological services.
Goal 4: Prepare professional psychologists to examine the historical context and the
current body of knowledge of biological, cognitive, affective, developmental, and social
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
bases of human functioning.
Goal 5: Prepare professional psychologists to critically evaluate the current and evolving
body of scholarly literature in psychology to inform professional practice.
The Master’s Program in Clinical Psychology has been designed to educate and train students to
enter a professional career as MA level practitioners. Argosy University/Chicago Campus
provides students an educational program with all the necessary theoretical and clinical elements
that will allow them to be effective members of a mental health team. The program introduces
students to basic clinical skills that integrate individual and group theoretical foundations of
applied psychology into appropriate client interactions and intervention skills. In addition, the
Program offers excellent preparation for those considering application to the Doctoral Program
in Clinical Psychology.
Course Objectives:
a. Gain the ability to write a clear, effective behavioral contract. This entails specifying
appropriate target behaviors and effective steps to achieve the target behavior.
b. Develop an understanding of basic behavioral concepts including schedules of
reinforcement as well as reinforcement and punishment paradigms.
c. Gain the ability to conduct a behavioral assessment interview including the use of Arnold
Lazarus’s BASIC-ID model.
d. Develop an understanding of the behavioral approach to the therapeutic relationship.
e. Learn the cognitive-behavioral theories of Aaron T. Beck and Albert Ellis. Understand
the concept of depressogenic and anxiogenic thoughts. Know the typical thought
schemas underlying some personality disorders.
f. Understand how gender and cultural factors relate to cognitive-behavioral therapy and be
able to integrate at least one culture's (e.g. African American, Asian, disability)
behavioral tendencies into a behavioral assessment and treatment plan.
Class Outline
Please have all readings done by the day for which they are assigned. The class is designed such
that we will be having extended discussions that assume the completion of the readings. This
schedule is a guideline and the lecture content will modified as needed to accommodate discussion
time.
1
Date
9/5/07
2
9/12/07
Topics
Overview of the course,
introduction to CBT,
assessment, BASIC ID,
stages of change,
motivational interviewing
Functional analysis,
therapeutic relationship,
conditioning
Readings
Assignments
Goldfried &
Davidson 1-4
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Continue conditioning,
behavioral contracts
begin cognitive theory, case
conceptualization
9/26/07 Continue cognitive theory,
Beck’s CBT & Ellis’ REBT
10/3/07 Cognitive interventions,
behavioral interventions
10/10/07 Relaxation training, CBT
with anxiety disorders
10/17/07 Anxiety – phobias,
systematic desensitization,
OCD,
children and adolescents
G&D 10; Beck 1-3
8
10/24/07 Depression – theory
Beck 8-10
9
10/31/07 Depression cont. CBT with
children and adolescents,
MBCT
11/7/07 Interface issues, homework,
obstacles to treatment, CBT
for eating disorders
11/14/07 Culturally responsive CBT
Beck 12
3
4
5
6
7
10
11
12
13
14
15
9/19/07
Assigned article
(Freeman)
G&D 7,8; Beck 6,7
G&D 5,6,11; Beck
13
Assigned articles
Relaxation tape/CD
assigned
Relaxation tape/CD
due
Midterm exam
assigned
Midterm exam due
Presentation chapter
assigned
Beck 11, 14
11/21/07 No class – Happy
Thanksgiving
11/28/07 Treatment planning, relapse
Beck 16; Linehan 1,
prevention, personality
4-5
disorders
12/5/07 Dialectical Behavior Therapy Linehan 7,8
12/12/07 Conclusion
Class presentations on
assigned chapters
from Hays &
Iwamasa
Final project due
Grading Criteria
Attendance
Class attendance is required. Having more than one unexcused absence is ground for an
incomplete or course failure. More than one excused absence (planned absence discussed ahead
of time with the instructor) or frequent tardiness will negatively affect your participation grade.
Grading
There will be one midterm exam (30%), final project (40%), a relaxation tape/CD (5%), a short
in-class application of CBT in the real world (5%), short class presentation on a book chapter
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(10%), and class participation (10%). Your participation grade will include attendance and
quality of participation. Papers must be turned in on time or points will be deducted per late day.
Grading of your written work will include writing style, APA style, grammar, and editing. If you
are uncertain about APA style or would like assistance to strengthen your writing skills, contact
the Argosy Academic Resource Center.
Grading Scale
A
AB+
B
BC+
C
CD+
D
DF
100 – 93
92 – 90
89 – 88
87 – 83
82 – 80
79 – 78
77 - 73
72 – 70
69 – 68
67 – 63
62 – 60
59 and below
Grading requirements
Attendance/participation
10%
CBT in the Real World
5%
Relaxation tape/CD
5%
Midterm Exam
30%
In class presentation
10%
Final Project
40%
TOTAL 100%
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CBT In The Real World
Each student will sign up to present in class an example of cognitive behavioral theory or
learning principles in action in the real world. This short presentation will occur at the beginning
of each class period.
Midterm Exam
The midterm will consist of a clinical case that you will conceptualize from a cognitive
behavioral perspective. Details will be discussed when assigned. This is worth 30% of your
final grade. Please limit your papers to a maximum of 8 pages, double spaced.
Class Presentation
In 2006, Hays and Iwamasa published a book on conducting culturally responsive cognitive
behavioral therapy. Teams of students will be assigned a chapter from the text to summarize in a
brief class presentation. Details will be discussed when assigned. This is worth 10% of your
final grade.
Final Project
The final project for this class will be a treatment project on yourself and a written report about
your experience, both as therapist and client. The goal of this project is to deepen your
understanding of cognitive behavioral techniques by applying them to yourself. Several kinds of
projects are possible. For example: a stress management program, self-control projects in which
you try to modify test anxiety, eating, smoking, exercise, nail-biting behavior; an assertiveness
training project, contingency management project where others (children or adults that you may
contract with) are involved. Choose something manageable given the scope of this project. As
part of your approach, you must use a behavioral contract and examine your beliefs. You need
to concentrate on all aspects of this project so do not select a behavior that is so emotionally
charged that you are distracted. You may use a manual created for your type of behavior
modification or you may create the intervention. The intervention should have some basis in
clinical literature. We encourage creativity in your project ideas and will let you know if they
are too creative. You are encouraged to review your topic choice with the instructor before
beginning. You must get permission from an instructor to use a client other than yourself
(though this is not recommended). This project is worth 40% of your grade and should not be
longer than 15 pages of double-spaced text (graphs and references excluded).
One purpose of this paper is to help you to get in touch with the complex issues of
“resistance to change.” Did you implement your program immediately and diligently? Why or
why not? What were the motivational issues involved? How did you work to overcome any
problems you had with your initial treatment plan? Your program should involve a serious
effort—a minimum of 1 to 1 1/2 hours of homework per week. Measurement techniques may
include formal assessment (e.g., the Beck Depression Inventory), SUDS scales (subjective units
of distress), or behavioral measures (e.g. counting the number of times an event occurs). You
must use a behavioral contract as part of your intervention.
Although there is a quantitative element to the paper (i.e. graphing an outcome), we are
more interested in the subjective aspect of your experience. What was it like being the client?
The therapist to a client like the one you were treating (i.e. you)? How did your gender and
cultural background impact the treatment? Did you experience any surprises? How did your
experience inform you about the reactions of a typical client? Optionally, you may wish to share
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the feelings you had towards the person who assigned the original assignment (i.e. the
instructor), which is another layer of interface issues.
Library Resources
Argosy University’s core online collection features more than 21,000 full-text journals, 23,000
electronic books and other content covering all academic subject areas including Business &
Economics, Career & General Education, Computers, Engineering & Applied Science,
Humanities, Science, Medicine & Allied Health, and Social & Behavior Sciences. All electronic
resources can be accessed through the library’s website at www.auchicagolib.org. User IDs and
passwords are distributed during orientation, but can also be obtained at the circulation desk,
calling 312-777-7653, or by e-mail at auchilibrary@argosyu.edu.
In addition to online resources, Argosy University’s onsite collections contain a wealth of
subject-specific research materials searchable in the Library Online Catalog. Catalog searching
is easily limited to individual campus collections. Alternatively, students can search combined
collections of all Argosy University Libraries. Students are encouraged to seek research and
reference assistance from campus librarians.
Information Literacy: Argosy University’s Information Literacy Tutorial was developed to teach
fundamental and transferable research skills, including selecting sources appropriate for
academic-level research, searching periodical indexes and search engines, and evaluating and
citing information. In the tutorial, students study concepts and practice them through
interactions. At the conclusion of each module, they can test their comprehension and receive
immediate feedback. Each module takes less than 20 minutes to complete. Please view the
tutorial at http://library.argosyu.edu/infolit/
Academic Policies
Academic Dishonesty/Plagiarism: In an effort to foster a spirit of honesty and integrity during
the learning process, Argosy University requires that the submission of all course assignments
represent the original work produced by that student. All sources must be documented through
normal scholarly references/citations and all work must be submitted using the Publication
Manual of the American Psychological Association, 5th Edition (2001). Washington DC:
American Psychological Association (APA) format. Please refer to Appendix A in the
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 5th Edition for thesis and paper
format. Students are encouraged to purchase this manual (required in some courses) and become
familiar with its content as well as consult the Argosy University catalog for further information
regarding academic dishonesty and plagiarism.
Scholarly writing: The faculty at Argosy University is dedicated to providing a learning
environment that supports scholarly and ethical writing, free from academic dishonesty and
plagiarism. This includes the proper and appropriate referencing of all sources. You may be
asked to submit your course assignments through “Turnitin,” (www.turnitin.com), an online
resource established to help educators develop writing/research skills and detect potential cases
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of academic dishonesty. Turnitin compares submitted papers to billions of pages of content and
provides a comparison report to your instructor. This comparison detects papers that share
common information and duplicative language.
Americans with Disabilities Act Policy
It is the policy of Argosy University to make reasonable accommodations for qualified students
with disabilities, in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). If a student
with disabilities needs accommodations, the student must notify the Director of Student Services.
Procedures for documenting student disability and the development of reasonable
accommodations will be provided to the student upon request.
Students will be notified by the Director of Student Services when each request for
accommodation is approved or denied in writing via a designated form. To receive
accommodation in class, it is the student’s responsibility to present the form (at his or her
discretion) to the instructor. In an effort to protect student privacy, the Department of Student
Services will not discuss the accommodation needs of any student with instructors. Faculty may
not make accommodations for individuals who have not been approved in this manner.
The Argosy University Statement Regarding Diversity
Argosy University prepares students to serve populations with diverse social, ethnic, economic,
and educational experiences. Both the academic and training curricula are designed to provide an
environment in which students can develop the skills and attitudes essential to working with
people from a wide range of backgrounds.
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