Move from all-or-nothing core belief thinking to a continuum — placing yourself and evidence along a 0–100 scale.
Core Belief Continuum
PreviewNegative end (0%):
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Positive end (100%):
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Where do you place yourself right now?
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Plot specific pieces of evidence at different points on the scale. Include evidence from all levels — not just the extremes.
Evidence plotted on the continuum
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Having plotted the evidence, where do you now place yourself?
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This is a worksheet calculation, not a validated clinical score.
What do you notice about where the evidence clusters?
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This is a read-only preview. Sign up to assign it and let clients complete it on any device.
The Core Belief Continuum is an interactive cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) worksheet. As a core CBT skill it is used right across the model, with presentations including depression, anxiety, OCD, trauma and low self-esteem, rather than being tied to a single diagnosis.
It is designed to be used within therapy rather than as a standalone self-help tool: a therapist introduces it, works through it collaboratively, and helps make sense of what it surfaces. You can preview the full worksheet above, then assign it digitally for clients to complete between sessions on any device — or download it as a print-ready PDF.
Most people work through it in around 20 minutes. It moves through three short steps:
Completed on the Formulate platform, your client's answers are saved automatically and shared straight back to you, so you can review them before the next session rather than waiting for a paper copy to come back.
In common with other CBT methods, the Core Belief Continuum works by noticing and re-evaluating unhelpful automatic thoughts (cognitive restructuring). The aim is not positive thinking but a clearer, shared understanding of what keeps a difficulty going — and practical, testable ways to change it.
Because it is a CBT tool it stays focused on the here-and-now links between thoughts, feelings, the body and behaviour, and it works best as one part of a wider course of therapy rather than as advice or a diagnosis.
This worksheet is grounded in established cognitive behavioural therapy theory and practice. Key sources include:
Formulate provides educational CBT resources for use with a qualified therapist. They are not a substitute for professional assessment, diagnosis, or crisis care.
If you need urgent help now:
Sign up free and send your client a link. They complete it on any device — you review their responses before the next session.
No credit card required. 10 free worksheets every month.
Create coping flashcards that capture a triggering situation, the old unhelpful response, and a new, more adaptive response — for quick reference in difficult moments.