What are your thoughts on environmental change? Is alteration of one’s environment something within one’s control? I suppose the answer depends on what’s meant when referring to one’s surroundings and mastery associated with the same.
In a blogpost entitled Circle of Concern, I invited readers to consider the spheres of control, influence, and concern. Within the sphere of control is only the self – you and only you. Even when considering this circle, you have limited control over yourself.
For instance, by nothing more than the power of your mind, you likely can’t stop your heart from beating for more than five minutes while resuming regular functioning thereafter. Thus, in the sphere of control you have limited mastery.
Likewise, regarding the sphere of influence, you have no control over other individuals. Still, you may have limited influence over other people. As an example, you may suggest to a loved one that you’d like to receive more calls or texts from this person on a weekly basis.
Perhaps this individual grants your request, perhaps not. The circle of influence isn’t an absolute guarantee, especially given the fact that you have limited control over yourself. Therefore, you can control only some things in your own life and you have limited influence over other people.
Moreover, within the sphere of concern are elements related to the past, conflicts in other nations, climate change, and so on and so forth. As you have limited control of yourself and limited influence over others, you likely have even less influence over the circle of concern.
For instance, you can’t go back in time and change the shirt you were wearing last Tuesday. Thus, while you may be concerned with the notion of having stained your shirt a week ago, you can’t in this moment control or influence the past. The circle of concern is almost out of reach.
This is the framework I use when practicing Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT). As I’ve illustrated how little mastery (if any) one has in regard to the self, others, and life, I now return to the question, “Is alteration of one’s environment something within one’s control?”
If one aims to control whether or not deforestation occurs in Brasil, I suspect you have zero control or influence over the environment in this regard. However, you may be surprised to learn that you can change some aspects of your surroundings.
Regarding this matter, page 199 of The REBT Therapist’s Pocket Companion invites REBT practitioners to encourage clients to change troublesome aspects of their environment if clients are unwilling or unable to change unhelpful beliefs with which they disturb themselves.
REBT theory uses the ABC model to illustrate how when Activating events (“Actions”) occur and people maintain irrational Beliefs about the events, these unhelpful assumptions – and not the actual occurrences – are what create unpleasant cognitive, emotive, bodily sensation, and behavioral Consequences.
Therefore, the ABC model incorporates Disputation of unhelpful assumptions in order to explore Effective new beliefs. How might this useful tool apply to environmental change?
From a psychological standpoint, people upset themselves using a Belief-Consequence (B-C) connection. Of course, this isn’t to suggest that in the context of the naturalistic or physical world there is no Action-Consequence (A-C) connection.
As an example, a room within your home may receive a lot of sunlight on a routine basis (Action) and therefore the room may continuously overheat (Consequence). Rooms with windows facing a direct path of sunlight are often hotter than rooms wherein this isn’t the case.
Still, if you unhelpfully Believe, “This shouldn’t happen and I can’t stand being hot in this room all the time,” then you’ll likely disturb yourself into an angry disposition (Consequence). After all, it isn’t the sunlight that causes your unpleasant outcome; it’s your attitude about the matter.
Thus, I help people to stop upsetting themselves through use of B-C connections, though I can’t fully resolve their A-C connections. Therefore, if you’re unwilling or unable to change unhelpful beliefs with which you disturb yourself, you can control environmental change within your home.
Placing blackout curtains on your window, introducing a fan into the room, or relocating to a separate room are all examples of immediate environmental change. Rather than an environment located within the sphere of concern, you can modify what control or influence you have concerning your room.
Although this example may seem a bit silly, the psychoeducational lesson herein could also apply to living near rowdy neighbors, residing in a high crime area, intimate partner violence, and other more challenging elements of life. Of course, differing scenarios are met with varying degrees of solutions.
In any case, I hope to have given you something to consider in regard to the circles of control, influence, and concern, as well as the A-C and B-C connections. If you’d like to know more about environmental change concerning the atmosphere of your beliefs, emotions, and behavior, I’m here to help.
If you’re looking for a provider who works to help you understand how thinking impacts physical, mental, emotional, and behavioral elements of your life—helping you to sharpen your critical thinking skills, I invite you to reach out today by using the contact widget on my website.
As a psychotherapist, I’m pleased to help people with an assortment of issues ranging from anger (hostility, rage, and aggression) to relational issues, adjustment matters, trauma experience, justice involvement, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety and depression, and other mood or personality-related matters.
At Hollings Therapy, LLC, serving all of Texas, I aim to treat clients with dignity and respect while offering a multi-lensed approach to the practice of psychotherapy and life coaching. My mission includes: Prioritizing the cognitive and emotive needs of clients, an overall reduction in client suffering, and supporting sustainable growth for the clients I serve. Rather than simply helping you to feel better, I want to help you get better!
Deric Hollings, LPC, LCSW
References:
Dryden, W. and Neenan, M. (2003). The REBT Therapist’s Pocket Companion. Albert Ellis Institute. ISBN 0-917476-26-3. Library of Congress Control Number: 20031044378
Freepik. (n.d.). People celebrating world population day [Image]. Retrieved from https://www.freepik.com/free-ai-image/people-celebrating-world-population-day_186512586.htm#fromView=search&page=3&position=0&uuid=dc370d67-0b4c-448e-9c7a-6d8ae81641e5
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Hollings, D. (2023, September 19). Life coaching. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/life-coaching
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