Albert Ellis: Life And Contributions To Psychology

Albert Ellis was a psychologist who made substantial contributions to the field of psychotherapy, helping shape the way modern therapeutic modalities are applied. Through research and real-world experience, Ellis helped develop rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT), which laid the groundwork for cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), one of the primary therapeutic modalities still in use today. Considered one of the most influential psychologists of all time, Ellis researched and wrote extensively on sexuality, relationships, and psychotherapy. Below, we’re going to discuss the life and work of Albert Ellis. 

Early life and interest in psychotherapy

Albert Ellis was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1913 and raised in New York City. Though he had an interest in sports from an early age, he developed a passion for fiction writing after experiencing severe health challenges. Ellis earned a bachelor’s degree from the City University of New York, before starting a business with his brother and then beginning a writing career. After struggling to get his fiction published, he began writing non-fiction and developing ideas about human sexuality that would lead to an interest in counseling. 

Columbia University and early career

After writing about human sexuality, Ellis decided to explore psychology, earning a master’s degree in clinical psychology from Teachers College, Columbia University. He would go on to earn a Ph.D. in clinical psychology from Columbia University as well, while also starting a counseling practice. Ellis later worked as the chief psychologist of New Jersey and teach at New York University, Rutgers University, and Pittsburgh State University. Early in his counseling career, Ellis focused on traditional psychoanalytical methods. As he became more established, though, he began to criticize and distance himself from psychoanalytic theory, leading him to eventually develop his own therapeutic methods.

Development of rational emotive behavior therapy

After experimenting with his own methods of helping others navigate mental health challenges, Ellis began to feel that there were more efficient and active methods of treating common mental health conditions than psychoanalysis. He became interested in rational therapy at the beginning of his career, influenced by other prominent psychologists who were propounding beliefs similar to his own, including Erich Fromm and Karen Horney. He started developing a new modality, which he called rational-emotive therapy (then renamed rational emotive behavior therapy), and referred to himself as a rational therapist.

Ellis focused on helping his clients understand the self-defeating ideas and irrational thoughts that contributed to maladaptive behavior. He sought to help participants reframe these thought patterns through a process called cognitive restructuring. Cognitive restructuring can be explained by one of the fundamental concepts of rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT) developed by Ellis—the ABC model. The ABC model proposes that the activating events (A) that occur in our lives cause us to develop beliefs (B) about those events that lead to emotional consequences (C). 

This connection between our thoughts and emotions serves as the basis for cognitive behavioral therapy, which is still one of the predominate forms of psychotherapy utilized by mental health professionals. After seeing the success of his new form of therapy, he spread it to other experts in the field and released a paper to the American Psychological Association. Its reception could be considered lukewarm. People were moderately interested in his therapy, but few foresaw just how useful it would prove to be. Although he had expanded on accepted methods, the focus of the psychology world remained primarily on behaviorism and the works of Freud and Jung.

Many also questioned Ellis' therapy due to the way he presented it, often adopting a straightforward and brash communication style that ran counter to the staid personas of most psychologists of the time. During one therapy session, Ellis reportedly directed a client to experience 40 romantic rejections before their next appointment. These unorthodox methods may have contributed to the perception of some in the psychological community that rational emotive behavior therapy was characterized by a weak therapeutic relationship, though later research suggests that therapist-client relationships in REBT were strong. 

Ellis took the mixed reviews well, though, and was never made to be insecure about his beliefs. He stated, “By not caring too much about what people think, I'm able to think for myself and propagate ideas which are very often unpopular. And I succeed”. He later said, “Most people would have given up when faced with all the criticism I've received over the years.”

However, rational emotive behavioral therapy proved to be the future of mental health care, changing the path of psychotherapy and psychology as a whole. In the 1960s, other psychologists, like Aaron Beck, built on his ideas while developing various modalities based on the interplay of thoughts and behavior. Together, they continued to break from the psychoanalytical theories of Freud and Jung. This shift away from psychoanalysis is often called the “cognitive revolution,” and Albert Ellis was one of its most important figures. As he continued to hone his theories on therapeutic treatment, Ellis conducted a large amount of research and wrote on a wide range of subjects related to human behavior.

Albert Ellis Institute

In 1959, Ellis began the Institute for Rational Living, now called the Albert Ellis Institute. A non-profit organization, the Institute is still used for training and clinical treatment. Therapists at the Albert Ellis Institute can learn how to practice rational emotive behavior therapy through workshops, fellowships, and training programs. 

Ellis on sex

Ellis was deeply interested in the links between sex and emotional wellness, though many of his ideas on sex have been considered controversial. Ellis believed that sexual suppression can have a negative effect on an individual’s emotional health, which can be difficult to reverse. Much of his counseling career involved helping couples increase intimacy. Because of his open-minded views on sex, he is considered a central figure in the American sexual revolution. 

Ellis on education

Ellis also believed that education is integral to mental wellness. He once said, "I think the future of psychotherapy and psychology is in the school system. We need to teach every child how to disturb himself or herself rarely seriously and how to overcome disturbance when it occurs."

Published works

Ellis wrote or co-wrote 80 books and over 1,000 articles on therapy, sex, and relationships, including the following: 

• Overcoming Procrastination: Or How to Think and Act Rationally in Spite of Life’s Inevitable Hassles (with William J. Knauss)

• Personality Theories: Critical Perspectives (with Lidia Abrams and Mike Abrams)

• Feeling Better, Getting Better, Staying Better: Profound Self-Help Therapy for Your Emotions

• Overcoming Destructive Beliefs, Feelings, and Behaviors

• The Secret of Overcoming Verbal Abuse: Getting Off the Emotional Roller Coaster and Regaining Control of Your Life (with Marcia Grad Powers)

• The American Sexual Tragedy

• Creative Marriage (with Robert A. Harper)

• Rational Emotive Behavioral Approaches to Childhood Disorders: Theory, Practice and Research (with Michael E. Bernard)

• The Art & Science of Rational Eating

• Counseling and Psychotherapy With Religious Persons (with Stevan L. Nielson and W. Brad Johnson)

• Making Intimate Connections: Seven Guidelines for Great Relationships and Better Communication (with Ted Crawford)

• Alcohol: How to Give It Up and Be Glad You Did (with Philip Tate)

• Overcoming Resistance: A Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy Integrated Approach

Through his writings, he investigated why and how destructive personality traits and behaviors occur, and what the best ways to dismantle them are. His writing on sex—including Sex Life of the American Woman and the Kinsey Report and Sex Without Guilt in the Twenty-First Century—elucidated his free-thinking views on sexuality. He also offered further insights into the ideas that form the basis of rational emotive behavior therapy in books like Humanistic Psychotherapy: The Rational-Emotive Approach and Reason and Emotion in Psychotherapy. 

Ellis wrote about everything from managing anger to overcoming the fear of flying. Much of his published work centers around how to navigate common challenges through the ABC framework or other principles of rational emotive behavior therapy. 

Awards and honors

Throughout his career, Ellis was given many awards and accolades for his work. He won the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies Lifetime Achievement Award, the American Psychological Association Award for Distinguished Professional Contribution to Applied Research, the New York State Psychological Association Lifetime Distinguished Service Award, and more. 

Albert Ellis’ contribution to psychology

Albert Ellis left a lasting impact on the field of psychology. The therapeutic modality Ellis founded is thought to have provided the foundation for later cognitive behavioral therapies, which have become the gold standard in modern psychotherapy. 

Ellis died in 2007, at the age of 93. Frank Farley, the one-time president of the American Psychological Association, wrote a eulogy succinctly summarizing Albert Ellis’ contribution to psychology. He stated:

“Psychology has had only of a handful of legendary figures who not only command attention across much of the discipline but also receive high recognition from the public for their work. Albert Ellis was such a figure, known inside and outside psychology for his astounding originality, his provocative ideas, and his provocative personality. He bestrode the practice of psychotherapy like a colossus”.

Participating in cognitive therapy online

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)—which employs many of the therapeutic concepts that Albert Ellis helped to develop—is a proven method of managing several different mental health concerns. And studies show that online cognitive behavioral therapy is just as effective as traditional, in-person treatment. For example, researchers in one study found that online CBT led to significant improvements in depression and anxiety symptoms. They also mentioned the ability of online therapy to circumvent common barriers to mental health care, which include geographical limitations, cost, and perceived stigma.

If you’re living with mental health challenges, know that help is available. With an online therapy platform like  BetterHelp, you can work with a therapist remotely, which can be helpful if mental health concerns make it difficult for you to go to an office. BetterHelp works with thousands of mental health professionals—including therapists who practice cognitive behavioral therapy—so you’ll have a good chance of connecting with someone who can help you identify potentially unhelpful thoughts and address your specific concerns.