Therapist Materials for Tracking Emotions over Time (the “ARC”)

The session covered in this chapter explores the steps that unfold over time in emotions: Antecedent (A) is what comes before that sets up the emotional reaction. Response (R) is the emotional response itself, which has the three components of thoughts, physical sensations, and urges/behaviors. Consequence (C) is all the positive and negative, short-term and long-term effects of the emotion—including the behavioral reaction that was chosen—what happened and did not happen; what we learned or missed out on learning; and what was reinforced by our actions. Form 8.1: The ARC of Emotional Experiences, which is used throughout the remainder of treatment, is introduced in this session.