An Afterword: The Utility of Cognitive Models for the Field of Psychopathology

Abstract

Cognitive models of psychopathology provide opportunities and challenges for both the research psychopathologist and the clinician concerned with practical applications to individuals. Heterogeneity of individual pathology within diagnostic categories, heterogeneity of content within symptom categories, undue reliance on judgment-based ratings, and frequent emphasis on deficit rather than the overt behavior of the patients are some of the major issues. Others include the complex interaction between cognitive and affective processes and the fact that input-output functions are often nonlinear and marked by critical threshold values for the appearance of overt pathology. An important feature of models is the discipline that they introduce into theorizing about psychopathology plus the focus on precise quantification.