Five Areas Model
Williams & Garland (2002) · Low mood, anxiety and stress (transdiagnostic)
Written by Tarun Vermani, Trainee Clinical Psychologist Last reviewed
The Five Areas model, set out by Williams and Garland (2002), is a CBT assessment map that links a person's life situation, relationships and practical problems with altered thinking, feelings, physical symptoms and behaviour.
Five Areas Model
Williams & Garland (2002)
Situation / Trigger
Life situation, relationships and practical problems — what is happening around the person: relationships, work or study, money, housing, caring roles and other practical pressures, and the practical resources and support they can draw on.
Thoughts
Altered thinking — negative or extreme thoughts about oneself, others and the future; worry and going over things; self-criticism; and unhelpful thinking styles such as expecting the worst.
Emotions
Altered feelings — low mood, anxiety, guilt, shame, anger or irritability, shaped by how the situation is being understood.
Physical Sensations
Altered physical symptoms — tiredness and low energy, poor sleep, changes in appetite, tension and aches, restlessness, and the bodily signs of anxiety.
Behaviour
Altered behaviour or activity level — doing less and withdrawing, avoiding situations, and unhelpful behaviours that bring short-term relief but keep problems going (such as drinking more or staying in bed). Helpful behaviours belong here too, as strengths to build on.
The published model, shown for reference. Switch to “Blank” to see the empty template you complete with a client.
Understanding the model
When life gets difficult, it can affect us in several ways at once. The Five Areas model, developed by Chris Williams and colleagues, looks at those effects side by side, so they are easier to understand and to start changing.
The first area is your life situation: what is happening around you. That includes relationships, work or study, money, housing and other practical problems, as well as the people and resources you can call on. Pressures here can affect everything else.
The other four areas are about you. Your thinking can change, for example expecting the worst or being hard on yourself. Your feelings can change, so you feel low, anxious or irritable. Your body can change, with tiredness, tension or poor sleep. And what you do can change: doing less, avoiding things, or doing things that help for a moment but not in the long run.
Each area affects the others. A small change in one, such as doing a little more or sorting out one practical problem, can start to help the others too. That gives you a choice of places to begin.
Questions therapists ask about this model.
Frequently asked questions
What are the five areas?
Life situation, relationships and practical problems; altered thinking; altered feelings; altered physical symptoms; and altered behaviour or activity level. Williams and Garland (2002) describe them as an assessment model for everyday clinical practice, in which a change in any one area can influence each of the others.
How is it different from the hot cross bun?
The hot cross bun, from Padesky and Mooney (1990), maps one situation and how thoughts, emotions, body sensations and behaviour keep each other going in that moment. The Five Areas model widens the first area to take in the client's circumstances — relationships, money, work, housing and the support around them — so the map covers what is happening in the client's life as well as within them.
When is the Five Areas model a good fit?
It is widely used in guided self-help and low-intensity CBT, where a clear, jargon-free map helps a client pick one area to start with; Williams' Overcoming Depression workbook (2001) is built around it. It is a broad, transdiagnostic framework rather than a disorder-specific model, so for panic, OCD or PTSD the specific model is usually the better guide to treatment planning.
Worksheets and reading for this model
Using this model in session — for therapists
How to introduce the model, guided-discovery questions, treatment targets and a behavioural experiment are available to signed-in therapists.
References
- Williams, C. J., & Garland, A. (2002). A cognitive-behavioural therapy assessment model for use in everyday clinical practice. Advances in Psychiatric Treatment, 8(3), 172–179.
- Williams, C. J. (2001). Overcoming depression: A five areas approach. Arnold.
- Padesky, C. A., & Mooney, K. A. (1990). Clinical tip: Presenting the cognitive model to clients. International Cognitive Therapy Newsletter, 6, 13–14.
This diagram is a reconstruction of the published model for clinical and educational use, grounded in the sources above.
Cite this page (APA 7)
Vermani, T. (2026). Five Areas Model. Formulate. https://formulatetools.co.uk/tools/formulation/five-areas
For use alongside professional support
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:
- Emergency services: 999 — if you or someone else is in immediate danger
- Samaritans: 116 123 — free, day or night, 365 days a year
- SANEline: 0800 689 5555 — 4:30pm–10:30pm, every day
Build this formulation with your client
Create a free account to open the interactive formulation builder, complete this model collaboratively, and export it as a PDF or share it with your client.