ACT Mindfulness & Acceptance Processes Flashcards

Which of the following best describes 'self-as-context' in ACT?

Answer: The observing self that is distinct from thoughts and feelings

Self-as-context refers to the 'observing self'—a stable perspective from which one can witness thoughts and feelings without being defined by them.

The ACT process of 'acceptance' most accurately means:

Answer: Actively welcoming difficult internal experiences without defense

Acceptance in ACT means actively and willingly opening up to difficult experiences rather than fighting or avoiding them.

A client with chronic pain keeps trying to suppress thoughts about pain, which increases their distress. The ACT-informed response would be to:

Answer: Encourage willingness to experience pain-related thoughts without struggling

ACT encourages willingness—opening up to pain-related thoughts rather than fighting them—as suppression often amplifies distress.

Which ACT technique involves having a client write their thoughts on leaves and watch them float down a stream?

Answer: Leaves on a stream

The 'leaves on a stream' is a classic ACT defusion and mindfulness exercise where clients visualize placing thoughts on leaves and watching them drift by.

In ACT, 'creative hopelessness' is a therapeutic technique intended to:

Answer: Highlight the ineffectiveness of experiential avoidance strategies the client has been using

Creative hopelessness in ACT helps clients recognize that their avoidance-based control agenda has not worked, opening them to new approaches.

Which of the following is NOT one of the six core processes of the ACT hexaflex model?

Answer: Negative reinforcement

Negative reinforcement is a behavioral concept, not one of the six ACT hexaflex processes, which include defusion, acceptance, present-moment contact, self-as-context, values, and committed action.