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Albert Ellis founded and has spent a lifetime practising and teaching rational emotive behaviour therapy. REBT (previously RET) is important not only in its own terms as an effective therapeutic approach to emotional disturbance, but also as the precursor of the cognitive-behavioural therapy movement which now exerts such an influence on the mental health field.

Joseph Yankura and Windy Dryden present a lucid overview of the life and contributions of Albert Ellis. Using excerpts from Ellis's own writings to clarify the discussion, they look in particular at the famous ABC analysis which enables people to understand and deal with their problems, the key concepts of ego disturbance and discomfort disturbance, and Ellis's views on therapeutic efficiency.