Thinking Errors: Identifying and Replacing Them with Positive Thoughts

Have you found yourself thinking, “I always mess up” or I’ll never get it right”? Maybe you've imagined the worst outcome, even when you’re unsure. Or seen your child get frustrated after a small mistake. These are some examples of thinking errors.

Thinking errors can affect anyone, no matter their age. Both children and adults can experience distorted thinking — and when this happens, it could lead to intense emotions and negative behaviors.

But the good news is that these patterns can be challenged and changed.

What are Thinking Errors?

Thinking errors are patterns of thinking that can distort how we see things. They often involve focusing too much on the negative or blowing things out of proportion. Research shows that such thoughts make people more likely to feel depressed [*]. This may be because they create a cycle of feelings and actions that are hard to break.

Imagine a parent getting feedback at work and thinking, “I’m bad at my job.” This thought pattern is called overgeneralization, where one mistake makes them think they’re terrible at everything. Similarly, a child might fail a math test and label themselves as “dumb” without realizing they might just need more practice or had a bad day.

What Causes Thinking Errors?

Unhelpful thinking styles are common in mental health conditions like anxiety, depression, or obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) — but they can happen to many people when they’re stressed or worried. We often do this to make sense of a situation but it can easily turn into overthinking that makes us feel worse [*].

Some causes of thinking errors include:

• Stressful situations like job loss, relationship problems, or health issues
• Past negative or traumatic events
• Low self-esteem (believing we’re not good enough)
• Negative feedback or criticism from others
• Mental health conditions affected by the imbalance of chemicals in the brain
• Unrealistic expectations (or wanting things to be perfect)

A therapist can help people understand what causes their thinking errors and help them find better ways to handle these thoughts.

Common Thinking Errors

Becoming aware of such thought patterns is the step toward challenging them and seeing things more clearly. Once we’re able to reframe them — meaning that we look at the situation or thought from a different perspective — we can start to feel better.

Here is a thinking errors list that highlights some of the most common types and how they might show up:

All-or-Nothing Thinking

All-or-nothing thinking, also known as black-and-white thinking, is when we view situations as either “all good” or “all bad,” without any middle ground. This kind of thinking can make people feel discouraged because they ignore the good parts of the situation.

Here’s an example: Someone has been working hard to improve their fitness. However, they didn’t manage to finish the entire routine they had planned. They might think, “I didn’t do the full workout, so it’s a total failure.”

It’s important to understand that most situations fall somewhere in the middle. Another way to overcome this thinking error is to focus on progress rather than perfection.

Disqualifying the Positive

Disqualifying the positive is when we ignore or downplay the good things that happen. It’s convincing ourselves that they don’t count. For example, a person receives praise at work for a project they completed, but they immediately think that others are just being nice.

To challenge this thinking error, we can try accepting compliments or positive events at face value. We can remind ourselves that positive things are worth acknowledging so we can feel proud of our accomplishments.

Overgeneralization

Overgeneralization is when a person takes one negative event and uses it to make a broad, negative conclusion about themselves or the world. This type of thinking can make us feel stuck as if one mistake means everything is ruined.

Here’s an example: A child fails a math test and thinks they’re “terrible” at math. As they generalize this one bad experience, they see their ability as fixed.

Instead of looking at an event as a pattern, we can tell ourselves that one mistake does not define our abilities. Parents can help their kids focus on what can be learned from the experience and how improvement is always possible.

Catastrophizing

Catastrophizing involves imagining the worst possible outcome, even when it’s unlikely to happen. This can make small problems feel overwhelming. An example would be missing an important meeting and thinking everything will fall apart.

To challenge catastrophizing, a person can focus on the facts and ask, “What’s the worst that can really happen?” They can try to see the situation logically and figure out what steps can be taken to fix it.

Emotional Reasoning

Emotional reasoning happens when we let our emotions guide how we think about a situation. In other words, it’s assuming that feelings are facts.

Here’s an example: A person feels anxious about a social event and thinks they’re going to make a fool of themselves. The anxiety they’re experiencing makes them believe that something bad will happen, even though there’s no actual evidence. As a result, they avoid social situations or do not fully participate.

A more balanced approach would be realizing that feeling anxious doesn’t mean something will go wrong. A person could also challenge emotional reasoning by reminding themselves that emotions can be temporary and do not necessarily reflect the truth of the situation.

Labeling

Labeling involves unfairly categorizing ourselves or others with negative terms based on a single experience. An example of labeling in a teen might look like this: They struggle to start a conversation at a party and then label themselves as “awkward” or “a social failure.”

To address negative labeling, the teen can be encouraged to reframe their thoughts. Instead of calling themselves “awkward” or “a social failure,” they could recognize that social situations are tough for everyone at times.

Fortune-telling

This type of thinking (one of the forms of jumping to conclusions) leads to unnecessary anxiety and can prevent someone from taking action or enjoying experiences because they assume that something bad will happen in the future.

Some examples of fortune-telling include thinking they’ll fail a test or people getting upset with them even when no negative feedback has been given.

One antidote to fortune-telling is to practice evidence-based thinking. If someone is predicting failure, they could focus on past successes or consider all possibilities. 

Personalization

Personalization is when someone assumes responsibility for events outside their control or believes everything is about them. Examples include thinking that if something goes wrong, it must be entirely their fault, or a parent assuming their child’s poor performance is due to not providing enough support.

This type of thinking can create unnecessary guilt and stress. The best way to deal with personalization is to practice self-compassion. Self-compassion allows people to accept imperfections without excessively criticizing themselves.

Blaming

A person might blame someone for a conflict without acknowledging their own role, or they might blame themselves entirely for a situation, even if there were other contributing factors. Blaming as a thinking error prevents individuals from seeing the full picture and can hinder problem-solving.

We need to learn to acknowledge shared responsibility to avoid blaming. Moreover, rather than dwelling on blame, we can focus on how to resolve the issue.

“Should” Statements

The "should" statements thinking error happens when a person sets unrealistic expectations for themselves or others with phrases like “I should,” “I must,” or “I have to.”

The key problem with “should” statements is that they often reflect unrealistic ideals. For instance, someone who thinks they should always be happy ignores the reality that it’s okay to feel sad, frustrated, or overwhelmed sometimes.

Here’s how to replace “should” statements: Instead of demanding perfection, try using phrases like “I would like to,” “I can try,” or “It’s okay if…”

Magnification

This is when a person blows things out of proportion or exaggerates the significance of mistakes or setbacks. Since individuals focus only on the worst-case scenario, magnification amplifies stress.

The antidote to magnification is to practice realistic thinking by asking, “How big is this problem in the grand scheme of things?”

Minimization

Minimization is the opposite of magnification, where a person downplays or dismisses their strengths, accomplishments, or positive feedback they receive. It also includes attributing one’s successes to luck.

This mindset prevents us from fully acknowledging our own abilities, which can lead to a diminished sense of confidence. To counter minimization, we can practice self-acknowledgment. This means keeping a list of achievements and positive feedback to refer back to.

Mental Filter

A mental filter is like wearing a pair of glasses that only lets you see the bad parts of an experience, which makes everything seem worse than it actually is. This cognitive distortion is quite common because our brains are naturally wired to pay more attention to negative experiences as a survival mechanism [*].

Over time, if this pattern becomes habitual, it can become harder to recognize and appreciate the good things in life. One helpful tip is to take a moment to ask, “What went well here?”

Another useful tool is keeping a gratitude journal. Write down positive experiences, no matter how simple or small they may seem. 

The Bottom Line

With time and effort, we can replace these types of thinking errors with healthier habits. Reframing can be incredibly helpful for shifting our perspective. The key is to become aware of when these cognitive distortions arise and to consciously choose to challenge them.

Therapists, especially those skilled in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), can also guide us in identifying and transforming these harmful patterns of thought.

Feel free to explore our CBT resources for digital worksheets describing a variety of thinking errors and CBT concepts.

References:

1. Rnic, K., A Dozois, D. J., & Martin, R. A. (2016). Cognitive Distortions, Humor Styles, and Depression. Europe's Journal of Psychology, 12(3), 348. https://doi.org/10.5964/ejop.v12i3.1118
2. Grinspoon, P., MD. (2022, May 4). How to recognize and tame your cognitive distortions. Harvard Health. https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/how-to-recognize-and-tame-your-cognitive-distortions-202205042738
3. Vaish, A., Grossmann, T., & Woodward, A. (2008). Not all emotions are created equal: The negativity bias in social-emotional development. Psychological Bulletin, 134(3), 383. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.134.3.383