The Theory Evolution And Practice Development Of Belief Revision In The Perspective Of Psychotherapy Since The 20^th Century

This dissertation will attempt to construct theories and design specific practice for the belief revision of individuals with mental disorders based on a detailed investigation into the history and theory evolution and practice development of belief revision in psychotherapy since the 20~thh century,with an exploration of the characteristics of individual beliefs and belief system as well as the status quo and prospect of the belief revision in psychotherapy.The research involves two major parts:one is the theoretical development of belief revision in terms of the perspective of psychotherapy,with the aim of providing theoretical basis for the feasibility of belief revision in psychotherapy practice.The other is to explore the feasibility of belief revision in specific psychotherapy theory and pinpoint the role of belief revision in psychotherapy,with the hope of providing strategy-wise guidance for subsequent theory construction and operational design of belief revision.The following problems will be addressed:(1)to present a clear picture of the historical development of ideas concerning belief revision in three major psychotherapy schools;(2)to clarify the role of belief in individual psychological abnormality;(3)to explore the role and the effect pattern of belief revision in the integration of psychotherapy.(4)to construct a new theoretical model to improve specific practical strategies of belief revision.Detailed textual analysis and case studies and further exploration of such representative theories as psychoanalysis,existential therapy and cognitive behavioral therapy according to the time sequence will reveal that belief revision has not been explicitly stated in the therapeutic practice of psychoanalysis and has been implicitly included as an indicator of change.Existentialism focuses on the state of individual existence which directly determines the accumulation of experience of the individual.Meanwhile,belief is an output of experience.Therefore,the systematical features and core beliefs of belief revision will be outlines,yet no specific theory is formed.Cognitive behavioral therapy regards belief as the key pathogenic factor in psychotherapy,and clearly proposed to replace the original irrational beliefs with new reasonable beliefs.However,the belief revision is only part of the treatment in practice.The history of the belief revision can be summarized as:a wide application of the thought,an increasingly prominence of the thought and unstructured forms of the thought.The individual's beliefs exist in the form of a belief system with diversity,mobility,hierarchy and stability.Belief is predictive and instructive.Its degree of certitude is influenced by evidence.Current empirical researches are abundant in psychotherapy research with few theoretical constructions.In addition,the results of interdisciplinary research on belief revision have not been effectively applied onto the field of psychotherapy.Therefore,this research will construct a belief revision model that fit in the characteristics of individual belief system and construct theories as well as evaluate its application on individual belief by regarding belief revision as the common factor of psychotherapy,a research based on the psychoanalytic treatment of subconscious beliefs,the shaping of belief systems by existential psychotherapy,and the specific interventions provided by cognitive behavioral therapy.The Multi-belief Integration Revision Model(MBIRM)integrates the multiple characteristics of individual beliefs with the concepts of psychotherapy,which is not only align with holistic philosophy,but also follow the latest research progress in cognitive science;The core idea is to change or eliminate abnormally emotional and behavioral responses by dealing with individual irrational beliefs.In terms of operability,it covers the whole process of psychological intervention,and can be carried out in clinical practice in the form of short-term treatment,which is proved to be cost-effective and time-saving.technical ethics-wise,it can effectively avoid damages to individual subjectivity and identity.