Everybody has both negative and positive core beliefs. Core beliefs are often global and absolute (all or nothing).  Our core beliefs get activated when we experience strong moods or have life experiences that are either very positive or negative. When we are feeling good, our positive core beliefs are active (e.g., “I’m clever”). When we have negative moods, our negative core beliefs are activated (e.g., “I’m stupid”). Once activated, our core beliefs affect how we see things, and produce related automatic thoughts and assumptions (either positive or negative). Negative core beliefs are only problems when they become fixed and we lose our flexibility to see ourselves, others, and the world in positive ways.

Core Beliefs drive us to think, feel and behave in certain ways.  One example we have already seen is automatic thoughts.  Often Core Beliefs can be seen as themes within our automatic thoughts.  For example, when Harry has automatic thoughts like “Lupin doesn’t think I can handle the boggart”, “I’ll never be able to make a Patronus”, and “I will cost my team the Quidditch Cup”, the theme is a Core Belief that he is ineffective or incompetent.  We saw in the last section how cognitive restructuring and evaluating the evidence helped him change and overcome that Core Belief (in this section of the book he will work to overcome a Core Belief that he is alone). 

In summary, our Core Beliefs may be skewed and can directly lead to Cognitive Distortions, or thinking errors. 

We see this in action in Chapter 17 when he and his friends are attacked by Sirius Black.  Harry has his self-confidence back and, unexpectedly, he is able to fight back and gain the upper hand on Black.  Harry has the urge to kill the convicted murderer.  He has numerous automatic thoughts that tell him he knows everything there is to know and that Black deserves to die.  “Do it now”, says a voice in his head.  But Black pleads with him that he doesn’t know the “whole story”, that Harry must listen and that he lacks a full understanding.  Throughout the book Harry has learned about CBT and an approach to emotionally charged thoughts.  So, this situation creates a conflict.  His knowledge of thinking errors tells him that he should not jump to action and instead weigh all of the evidence.

This is further complicated by the appearance of Professor Lupin who begins to help Black.  Lupin pleads: “Let me explain…”  And now it is Hermione who shouts “NO!” and urges Harry not to hear more.  After further arguing, Lupin once again implores them: “If you’ll give me a chance, I’ll explain.”  Here Harry shows a high degree of skill and maturity.  “Harry didn’t know what to think.”  Yet despite his anger, he pauses to gather evidence.  Chapters 18 functions as a data gathering exercise where Harry and his friends ask questions to allow them to understand the situation more fully.  Initially they are confused.  “Harry couldn’t see where this story was going, but he was listening raptly all the same.”  When Professor Snape appears at the beginning of Chapter 19, he jumps to conclusions about Black and Lupin.  Lupin tells him “You’re making a mistake…You haven’t heard everything.”  Having evaluated some of the evidence Hermione now adds “it wouldn’t hurt to hear what they’ve got to say…”.  Unfortunately, Snape has not done CBT.  He is not open to other ways of thinking.  He “seemed beyond reason”.  Even Harry now tries to explain that Snape’s assumptions don’t fit the facts – he is finally putting all of the pieces together and has a chance to learn the full truth when Snape is disarmed – “at long last, Harry believed [Sirius]”.   This process demonstrates cognitive flexibility and openness to other ways of thinking that Harry was not capable of at the beginning of the book.  He has shown true character growth and demonstrated mastery of cognitive restructuring.

In Chapter 20, Harry’s work here pays off.  He discovers that he has a godfather who loves him and wants to take him in.  Harry has a core belief at the beginning of the series that he is essentially alone.  While this belief is initially factual given the evidence available, further information results in a dramatic change.  The belief that he is alone is partially challenged when Harry discovers Hogwarts, Dumbledore and his friends.  He learns that he can have a support network, but he is still missing a loving family.  The realization that he has a godfather who cares deeply for him (in addition to Lupin, his father’s other best friend) is the final event that shatters his core belief that he is alone.  “Some sort of explosion took place in the pit of Harry’s stomach”.  This short chapter ends with a cliffhanger in which Harry tries to save Sirius from attacking dementors.  He now has all of the skills and information necessary to produce a different outcome and that will be the focus of the final two chapters.