Every single day, the mind works all day. Even if it’s just to remember something or do anything in everyday life. Every aspect is controlled by the mind. Like going to work. A person gets up, showers and then runs to the workplace in order to get there early.
But what if that person arrives a few minutes late because a street was blocked? Any person could just go inside, greet the people in the office and move on. Nevertheless, that is not the situation if someone has a cognitive distortion. Going back to the moment, that person arrives late, goes inside the office, greets the people inside and thinks, “Everyone is judging me because I arrived late, how badly dressed I am, and they are all ignoring me because of it.” That thought is not true, but the person will think it and even have it on their mind all day long. And that is how cognitive distortions create negative thoughts every day.
Read More: Cognitive Distortions in Everyday Life: How our thinking traps us
What is a Cognitive Distortion?
A cognitive distortion could be defined as a mistaken thought. But, to really understand what it is in a full extension and how it affects all of us, there is a need for a more precise definition. According to Grohol (2009), cognitive distortions are how the mind convinces the person of something false. It’s not just a lie told by the brain; that would be a misconception. It’s actually an inaccurate thought that reinforces a negative thought or emotion.
What for? And that is a good question. The objective of a cognitive distortion, according to Grohol, is to just keep feeding the mind with negative thoughts that could even sound rational and true, but are not true and are just negative information. For example, the belief that something is impossible, even if that person hasn’t even tried it, but keeps saying in his mind that it is just impossible. To summarise, cognitive distortions are:
- Logical but irrational
- An unrealistic view of present reality
- Are also maladaptive because they produce negative emotions as a result of reinforcing an irrational belief.
- They also keep negative thoughts and emotions (Hossain, 2025).
How can a cognitive distortion affect your everyday life?
Cognitive distortion can be considered a dysfunctional thought process that can lead to consequences in everyday life. And that thought process can result in the development of depression or a feeling of unhappiness (Hossain, 2025). Both results are unhealthy and can negatively impact the quality of life of any person. Another consequence could be:
- An increase in anxiety
- Feelings of anxiety that can lead to panic attacks
- People can maintain a vicious cycle and the problem that leads to it because of cognitive distortion (Hossain, 2025).
How does a cognitive distortion form?
In order to get that, what needs to be understood is that cognitive distortions don’t form immediately. It’s not an instant process that will affect the person in a second. Yurica and Ditomasso (2005) gave a brief review of the literature about cognitive distortions and the possibility of when they form. Early in the life of any individual, experiences shape the beliefs of a person. Those beliefs or schemes are then accompanied by secondary schemes that form later in life.
That set of schemes forms or defines personal worth, such as emotions and ways of thinking. The thoughts turn into habitual ways of thinking that will process external stimuli that could be deleted, generalised, or distorted. And this is where cognitive distortions form.
Read More: Cognitive Distortions 101: The Hidden Link Between Cognitive Distortions, Anxiety, and Depression
Types of cognitive distortion and how to navigate them
There are many cognitive distortions identified. Since the term was born with the research of Beck, many more have been added to the list with the advances of research. But some are common to identify:
1. Catastrophizing
The amplification of an imaginative negative outcome of a situation. It leads to the person focusing on something that hasn’t happened yet, fixating on the worst-case scenario. Like trying on a new hobby, but instead of beginning with it, just thinking about how it’s going to be a waste of time, how it could go wrong, how it won’t go well (Friedman, 2023). One technique of mindfulness that can help with this is focusing on the present and also doing an assessment of the likelihood of worst-case scenarios.
2. Negative filtering
Just looking for the negative aspects of every situation (Friedman, 2023). For example, seeing something bad in every situation, like seeing mistakes made by a person instead of celebrating a success. A way of dealing with it is to assess realistically if the situation needs to focus on the negative sides or if it’s falling into excessive perfectionism.
3. Blaming
This is about assessing the cause of a problem or a negative outcome for someone else (Friedman, 2023). That shows when someone in front of the consequence of a negative outcome will have an outburst, blaming others instead of doing a personal exam. The way to get out of this cognitive distortion is to begin with the understanding that most situations are complicated and involve a lot of factors, such as factors and perspectives outside the control of a person.
Read More: Why It’s Easier to Blame Than Take Responsibility: A Psychological Perspective
4. Fallacy of fairness
This distortion is present in people who believe that life should always be according to a standard of fairness and equality (Friedman, 2023). Like the belief that “good things happen only to good people.” One way to get out of that distortion is the acknowledgement that life doesn’t always work with a standard of fairness, and uncertainty is a part of life.
5. Fortune-telling
This is an assumption similar to jumping to conclusions, and it’s the belief that assuming something negative is going to be the outcome of a situation that will happen (Friedman, 2023). That could lead the person to anxiety and depression. One way to overcome it is to assess the situation with facts and data, not hypothetical situations and the present.
Developing more balanced thought patterns
A few ways to develop positive thinking skills are:
1. Coping mechanisms
Coban (2013) found that teenagers show two ways of dealing with cognitive distortions. One is by using problem-solving methods. That means that they sit down to think about possible solutions when facing a problem instead of falling into cognitive distortions. And the second one is by seeking social support, that is, seeking their peer’s advice instead of using mechanisms such as self-blaming or avoidance strategies.
2. Shift of perception
Research done by El-Shokheby (2020) couldn’t find a correlation between stress and cognitive distortions in female teachers. But why? Well, the author put in a discussion how it could be because the female staff perceive the challenges of the work not as a threat but instead as a challenge that leads them to think of them as something to overcome rather than a problem. A shift in how someone perceives a new challenge could help with cognitive dissonance.
3. Emotional Intelligence
The relation between emotional intelligence and cognitive distortions is low, but it’s not entirely lost. In the research done by Yazici-Çelebi & Kaya (2022), that relation is explored, and it’s mentioned that there can be a low correlation, but when the way a cognitive distortion is formed is remembered, there can be something. When the perception of something is forming a cognition, one component of it is emotion. So emotions can actually impact the way that cognition is formed. With special attention to the good development of emotional intelligence, cognitive distortions could be identified in order for the person to judge them and deal with them before it becomes a problem.
4. Therapy
Another way to deal with cognitive distortions is, as recommended by research, indeed, psychological therapy. If someone feels that cognitive distortions are affecting his or her life in a way that feels beyond the person’s control of the person, it is a good choice to consult with a professional. One therapy recommended in that specific case of cognitive distortions is cognitive-behavioural stress management due to the relation between cognitive distortions and anxiety (Jessen, 2018). That therapy has the premise to help the person manage stress, but also the maladaptive thoughts related to it.
Conclusion
Cognitive distortions form while the cognition of every human is being formed. But that doesn’t mean they are normal thought patterns. Instead, they are a set of unrealistic thinking that could lead to the development of feelings of unhappiness, anxiety and depression.
Some of the most common ones include catastrophizing, biased thinking, negative filtering, and blaming. One way to deal with cognitive distortions is to do a real assessment of the situation that could be stressing the person. But that exam has to be based on reality and with facts. Another alternative way to deal with cognitive distortions is using coping mechanisms, developing emotional intelligence, doing a shift in perception and also therapy.
References +
- Çoban, A. E. (2013). Interpersonal Cognitive Distortions and Stress Coping Strategies of Late Adolescents. Eurasian Journal of Educational Research, 51, 65-83.
- Friedman, H. H. (2023). Overcoming cognitive distortions: How to recognise and challenge the thinking traps that make you miserable. Res. Gate, 1-17.
- Grohol, J. (2009). Common Cognitive Distortions. https://web. archive.
- org/web/20090707124344/http://psychcentral. com/lib/2009/15-common-cognitive-distortions
- Jessen, A. K. (2018). The role of authenticity and cognitive distortions in reducing workplace stress (Master’s thesis, Northern Arizona University).
- El-Shokheby, A. M. A. (2020). Investigating the Relationship between Cognitive Distortions and Academic Stress for Intermediate School Teachers before and during Work. International Journal of Higher Education, 9(5), 46-59.
- Hossain, M. S. (2025). Understanding patterns of cognitive distortions (Doctoral dissertation, © University of Dhaka).
- http://reposit.library.du.ac.bd:8080/xmlui/bitstream/handle/123456789/4306/MPhil_Clinical%20 Psychology%20%2824%29.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
- Yazici-Çelebi, G., & Kaya, F. (2022). Interpersonal Cognitive Distortions and Anxiety: The Mediating Role of Emotional Intelligence. International Journal of Psychology and Educational Studies, 9(3), 741-753.
- Yurica, C.L., DiTomasso, R.A. (2005). Cognitive Distortions. In: Freeman, A., Felgoise, S.H., Nezu, C.M., Nezu, A.M., Reinecke, M.A. (eds) Encyclopedia of Cognitive Behaviour Therapy. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/0-306-48581-8_36
