Mini Workshop 5 - CBT for What Matters Most: Using Science-based Strategies to Support Our Clients, Ourselves, and Each Other as We Work Towards a More Inclusive & Just World

In this workshop, we will discuss how to apply CBT and other evidence-based strategies to our activism and advocacy work within and beyond the field of clinical psychology, in order to maximize our effectiveness, increase our own resilience, and support our communities. From increasing inclusivity in all spheres of our work to advocating for our field, our clients, and all those experiencing oppression, we will discuss how the consistent use of the strategies we know can help us to maintain equilibrium while fighting the battles that are most important to us. We will further discuss how to use our knowledge to support colleagues, clients, trainees, and students, in pursuing their valued directions. The strategies themselves (including values clarification, compassion practice, cognitive restructuring, and intentional communication) will be familiar to many ABCT attendees; we will review the importance -- and challenges -- of implementing them ourselves in our daily lives, particularly in the current global context(s), with goals of decreasing symptoms of burnout and maintaining motivation and energy as we work on issues that affect us deeply. This workshop will be beneficial to people at all levels of activism or advocacy, whether just getting started or more experienced. Through group work and activities, attendees will learn and practice ways to maximize the impact of their work by applying CBT and related strategies – and to help others to do so as well.

Recommended Reading 1: Friedman-Wheeler, D. G. & Bodenlos, J. S. (2017). On becoming an activist: Tips from cognitive behavior therapy. The Behavior Therapist, 40(6),208-211.https://services.abct.org/i4a/doclibrary/index.cfm?category_id=20

Recommended Reading 2: Gorski, P. C. (2018). Fighting racism, battling burnout: causes of activist burnout in US racial justice activists. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 42(5), 667–687. https://doi.org/10.1080/01419870.2018.1439981

Recommended Reading 3: Bartels, M. (2024, November). Election grief is real. Here's how to cope. Scientific American, https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/election-grief-is-real-heres-how-to-cope/