Motivation and Learning Strategies for College Success : A Self-management Approach

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MANAGEMENT OF EMOTION AND EFFORT 119

Example: While talking the SAT exam, you have trouble con-

centrating because you keep saying to yourself, “What if I don’t

get into college?”

6. Magnifying: You exaggerate the degree or intensity of a prob-
   lem. You turn up the volume on anything bad, making it loud,
   large, and overwhelming.
   Example: “This term paper is ridiculous. I’ll never finish it.”


7. Personalization: You assume that everything people do or say
   is some kind of reaction to you. You also compare yourself to
   others, trying to determine who is smarter, more competent,
   better looking, and so on.
   Example: “Everyone in this class appears smarter than me.”


8. Shoulds: You have a list of ironclad rules about how you and
   other people should act. People who break the rules anger you,
   and you feel guilty when you violate the rules. Cue words used
   for this type of thinking are should, ought, or must.
   Example: “I never should appear hurt; I always need to appear
   happy and content.”

EXERCISE 5.2: IDENTIFYING IRRATIONAL

THINKING PATTERNS

Directions: Write the letter of the thinking pattern identified in the

second column by the statement in the first column. The correct

answers are listed at the end of this chapter.

Statement Pattern

—1. I know that my friend is mad at a. Filtering

me because I don’t want to go to

the concert with him.

—2. If my parents don’t like my b. Polarized Thinking

boyfriend, they don’t care about

me.

—3. My aunt spent a great deal of c. Overgeneralization

money to see the concert.

Therefore, I should like it.

—4. I don’t think I can do well in d. Mind Reading

this class, everyone seems so

smart.

—5. I know my speech professor liked e. Catastrophizing

my presentation, but my closing

argument wasn’t that great. I’ll

probably get a C.

continued