Ideals

Key Claims

Aristotle says that one needs an image of kalon to have virtuous action.
Image of kalon is what behavioral psychology calls ideals (values).
Ideals of behavioral therapy and virtues of positive psychology are the same reality, viewed from a different perspective (goal vs habit, respectively).
Ideals show us how to best engage a challenge.
Ideals are the way we can reframe any challenge.
Acting on ideals (patience) makes a given trigger progressively less triggering over time (produces habituation of triggered response).
Acting on ideals produces virtuous cycles. Patience makes this possible.
Meaning, mastery and pleasure are the outcomes of engaging virtuous cycles.
Acting against ideals produces vicious cycles.
Negative self-concepts, automation, and discomfort are the outcomes of engaging vicious cycles.
Virtuous cycles are reinforced by the reward of practicing ideals (“virtues are their own reward”, positive reinforcement).
Vicious cycles are reinforced by the relief of giving in (negative reinforcement).
Patience is the willingness to suffer discomfort as you practice your ideals. Impatience is unwillingness for the same.

Patience paradoxically reduces suffering, which habituates as reward increases.
Patience allows the same triggers to be used for engaging ideals rather than avoiding emotions.

Higher anxiety levels produces better results of exposure therapy.
You only can retrain the amygdala while the alarm is sounding.
Interoceptive exposure (feeling the anxiety itself) produces the most generalized benefits for exposure therapy.
Tiredness responds to habituation and sensitization the same as anxiety. Example is “second wind” effect in running. Tiredness may be the same thing as anxiety.
Aiming to get a habituation curve for anxiety to “0” is counterproductive.
The way to have the greatest sensitization of a trigger is a thwarted attempt to escape it.
Habituation cannot take place in context of thwarted escape.