Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, commonly called ACT, is an evidence-based psychological therapy that helps people respond more flexibly to difficult thoughts, feelings, memories, body sensations, and urges. The name is usually said as the word “act”, not as the letters A-C-T, because the therapy places strong emphasis on taking action guided by values [1,2].

ACT is not about forcing yourself to feel better before living your life. It is about learning how to carry difficult internal experiences more lightly, while doing more of what matters.

The Main Aim Of ACT

The main aim of ACT is to build psychological flexibility [1]. Psychological flexibility means being able to stay in contact with the present moment, notice thoughts and feelings without being dominated by them, and take action that fits with your values.

In everyday life, this might mean having the thought “I cannot cope” and still taking one small useful step. It might mean feeling anxious and still making a phone call. It might mean feeling flat and still going for a short walk, contacting a friend, attending an appointment, or completing one manageable task.

This is not easy. ACT does not suggest that it should be easy. It simply offers a practical way to stop waiting for perfect confidence or motivation before beginning.

Why Acceptance Matters

Many people naturally try to control or remove painful inner experiences. This makes sense. Human beings tend to move away from discomfort.

The problem is that some control strategies work in the short term but become costly in the long term. Avoidance, reassurance seeking, withdrawal, procrastination, emotional suppression, and overthinking can all provide temporary relief. Over time, they may also shrink life, reduce confidence, and keep distress going.

In ACT, acceptance means making room for what is already present when fighting with it is not helping. It does not mean approving of pain, tolerating unsafe behaviour, or giving up on change.

What Are Values In ACT?

Values are chosen life directions. They describe how a person wants to behave, rather than what they want to feel.

Examples of values may include being:

• Kind
• Reliable
• Honest
• Courageous
• Curious
• Connected
• Patient
• Fair
• Useful
• Present

Values are different from goals. A goal can be completed. A value is a direction you can keep returning to. For example, “repair the relationship” may be a goal. “Be respectful and honest” may be values that guide the process.

The Six Core ACT Skills

ACT is often described using six core processes. These are flexible clinical processes, not a rigid checklist [1,2].

Acceptance

Acceptance means opening up to thoughts, feelings, and sensations when doing so helps you live more effectively.

Cognitive Defusion

Defusion means stepping back from thoughts. Instead of “I am a failure”, a person might learn to notice, “I am having the thought that I am a failure.” This small shift can create room for choice.

Present-Moment Awareness

This involves noticing what is happening now. It can include awareness of breathing, movement, surroundings, emotion, or the task at hand.

Self-As-Context

This means noticing that there is a part of you that can observe thoughts and feelings without being reduced to them.

Values

Values help answer the question, “What kind of person do I want to be in this situation?”

Committed Action

Committed action means taking values-based steps. These steps are often small, repeated, and realistic.

ACT Is Not Just Positive Thinking

ACT is sometimes confused with positive thinking, but it is quite different. ACT does not ask people to replace every painful thought with a positive one.

Instead, ACT helps people notice thoughts without automatically obeying them. A person may still have a painful thought, but the thought does not have to run the whole day.

This distinction matters. In real life, some situations are hard. Some losses are genuine. Some health conditions, family pressures, work stresses, or financial pressures cannot be solved by thinking positively. ACT aims to help people respond with flexibility and integrity in the presence of real difficulty.

What Conditions Can ACT Help With?

Research has examined ACT across many psychological and health-related concerns. Reviews and meta-analyses indicate that ACT can be helpful for a range of difficulties, including anxiety, depression, stress, pain, and some physical health-related presentations [3–5].

ACT may also be useful where a person is dealing with uncertainty, emotional discomfort, avoidance, self-criticism, grief, adjustment, or the challenge of living according to values while symptoms are still present.

Like any therapy, ACT is not a guaranteed outcome. The fit between the person, therapist, goals, diagnosis, life circumstances, readiness, and treatment approach matters.

How ACT May Look In A Therapy Session

ACT sessions may involve conversation, reflection, practical exercises, mindfulness practices, values clarification, behavioural planning, and between-session practice.

A session might explore questions such as:

• What are you struggling with internally?
• What have you tried so far?
• What helps in the short term but costs you later?
• What matters to you in this part of life?
• What would be one small workable step?
• What thoughts and feelings might show up when you take that step?

This makes ACT quite practical. It is not only about insight. It is also about building patterns of action that can be repeated in ordinary life.

A Simple Example

Imagine someone wants to reconnect socially but feels anxious. Their mind says, “I will say something stupid” or “They will not want me there.” Avoiding the event may reduce anxiety for the evening, but it may also increase loneliness and reinforce fear.

An ACT approach would not require the person to first get rid of anxiety. It may help the person notice the anxious thoughts, make room for the feeling, remember the value of connection, and take a manageable step. That step might be sending one message, attending briefly, or arranging a short coffee with someone safe.

The aim is not instant confidence. The aim is workable movement.

How ACT Relates To CBT

ACT is part of the broader cognitive behavioural therapy tradition, but it has a distinctive emphasis. CBT often helps people examine the evidence for thoughts and develop more balanced thinking. ACT often asks whether a thought is helpful to hold tightly, and whether it supports valued action [1,5].

In practice, many psychologists use ACT and CBT together. The best approach is usually the one that fits the person and the problem.

Why ACT Can Feel Respectful And Practical

ACT starts from a very ordinary human truth: people can experience pain and still care about how they live.

Most people already know this in some way. A parent may show up while tired. A worker may do the next safe step while uncertain. A student may keep studying while anxious. A person in grief may still make a cup of tea, attend an appointment, or send a message. ACT brings structure and practice to this human capacity.

Related Services

• Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) in Varsity Lakes, Gold Coast QLD
• Therapy Approaches
• Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT)
• Mindfulness-Based Therapy
• Emotion Regulation and Behaviour Change

References

1. Hayes, S. C., Luoma, J. B., Bond, F. W., Masuda, A., & Lillis, J. (2006). Acceptance and commitment therapy: Model, processes and outcomes. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 44(1), 1–25. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.brat.2005.06.006
2. Hayes, S. C., Strosahl, K. D., & Wilson, K. G. (2012). Acceptance and Commitment Therapy: The Process and Practice of Mindful Change (2nd ed.). Guilford Press.
3. A-Tjak, J. G. L., Davis, M. L., Morina, N., Powers, M. B., Smits, J. A. J., & Emmelkamp, P. M. G. (2015). A meta-analysis of the efficacy of acceptance and commitment therapy for clinically relevant mental and physical health problems. Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, 84(1), 30–36. https://doi.org/10.1159/000365764
4. Levin, M. E., Hildebrandt, M. J., Lillis, J., & Hayes, S. C. (2012). The impact of treatment components suggested by the psychological flexibility model: A meta-analysis of laboratory-based component studies. Behavior Therapy, 43(4), 741–756. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beth.2012.05.003
5. Twohig, M. P., & Levin, M. E. (2017). Acceptance and commitment therapy as a treatment for anxiety and depression: A review. Psychiatric Clinics of North America, 40(4), 751–770. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psc.2017.08.009
6. Australian Psychological Society. (2024). Evidence-based psychological interventions in the treatment of mental disorders: A literature review (5th ed.). https://psychology.org.au/for-the-public/psychology-topics/evidence-based-psychological-interventions
7. Australian Psychological Society. (2024). Exploring Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. https://psychology.org.au/insights/exploring-acceptance-and-commitment-therapy