Cognitive errors are distortions of thinking that arise when a person processes information. These mental processes include: Selective perception - the tendency to see what we expect to see, ignoring what we do not want to see. Confirmation bias - selective attention to evidence that confirms our expectations. Memory distortion. Can be explained by the phenomenon of false memories, where people form memories based on events that simply could not have happened. In addition, a person may continue to believe false memories even in the presence of contradictory evidence. Self-fulfilling prophecies. The bottom line is that a person's expectations shape behavior, which leads to the intended result. This is clearly reflected in the fundamental research of Rosenthal and Jacobson (The Pygmalion Effect). A.T. Beck and other authors identify various types of distortions characteristic of automatic thoughts. Today we will talk about one of them - mind reading. This mental category manifests itself in two ways: We assume that we know the thoughts of other people. For example: “They think I’m strange,” “She doesn’t like me,” etc. We are convinced that others not only can, but should know what we are thinking. For example: “If he loves me, then he must know what I want for my birthday...” or “He must understand that I’m very tired today! Couldn’t he have guessed and met me from work?” The closer the relationship, the stronger the illusion. Remember! People are unpredictable. There is always the possibility that they may change their mind, at least in some isolated case, for some special reason. We cannot completely get rid of cognitive distortions, but we can reduce their influence on our behavior and emotional state. The CBT technique “Checking the Evidence” can help us with this. Be specific about your prediction (for example, “He won’t like me and he’ll refuse to talk to me”). Check the evidence for and against mind reading. Can you prove that people actually think this way? Is there evidence to the contrary? Assess the quality of the evidence for mind reading. Is it high enough to convince anyone to agree with you? How can you prove that this idea is wrong? Is it possible to check it somehow? Based on materials: 1. Socratic questions in psychotherapy and counseling / Waltman S., Codd III R., McFarr L., Moore B. - St. Petersburg: Peter, 20232. 10 stupidest mistakes people make / Arthur Freeman, Rose DeWulf - 4th edition, "Peter"3. Harmful thoughts / Daniel Fryer - Alpina Publisher LLC, 20224. Cognitive psychotherapy techniques / Robert Leahy - "Peter", 2022