Paradoxical intention involves which technique?

• A. Encouraging the client to confront feared situations directly
• B. Teaching clients to suppress anxious thoughts
• C. Reframing problems as unsolvable
• D. Helping the client invoke exaggerated negative thoughts to reveal consequences

Answer: (D)

Paradoxical intention involves deliberately engaging with the fear or symptom in order to reduce its power. The idea is to purposefully do or exaggerate the thing you fear, with the belief that facing it head-on—often in an exaggerated way—helps reveal that the anticipated disaster isn’t as likely or as awful as imagined. This undermines avoidance and the worry cycle that fuels anxiety. For example, to address anxiety about the feared outcome, the therapist might encourage the client to deliberately exaggerate the negative thoughts and observe the consequences, which often undermines their grip. This contrasts with simply confronting situations (exposure), suppressing thoughts, or reframing the problem as unsolvable, which do not employ this paradoxical, self-ivoking strategy.