What is the Adaptive Information Processing (AIP)?
Adaptive Information Processing (AIP) is a framework that explains EMDR therapy applications and treatment. It is the understanding upon which EMDR therapy is built: that every person has the natural ability to adapt and heal.
Let’s explore an example.
A child who is learning to swim may experience an adult holding them above water and then letting them go because they got distracted for a moment. This results in the child going underwater. The adult then takes hold of them again and brings them to the surface. When the child begins to cry, the adult gives comfort and reassurance. The child learns they are OK, and the fear passes. The child can recall later how much fun they were having in the water and the safety and support from the adult after a scary moment, so the memory most likely gets processed adaptively.
In an alternate example, a child has the same experience of going underwater, but the adult does not offer the support needed. They bring the child back to the surface but they do not offer comfort and reassurance. On the contrary, they might blame the child for going underwater. The distress of the event does not resolve. The child cannot recall how much fun they were having in the water and they cannot recall the safety and support from the adult because they did not receive it. The memory becomes linked in a non-adaptive way. The child might experience feelings of guilt, responsibility, anxiety, and fear that persist long after this event.
The recalling of this past event could be at a cognitive level when the child—now an adult— remembers the narrative of the story. However, the recalling can also be in the form of disturbing sensations, images, or beliefs about self, like “I am not in control.” The experience of going underwater and not receiving any comfort has overwhelmed the information processing system of this child.
When reprocessing the above memory with EMDR therapy, the person who experienced this event would link it to an adaptive resolution by remembering that he/she would not blame a child in that situation and he/she could offer the support, comfort and reassurance to themselves now that they needed at that time. This person could link this event to the fact they survived and it is a past event which does not have to impact the way they see their present and their future. This person might realize that they were not in control when they were underwater but now as an adult they could be in control of their present situation.
The Adaptive Information Processing (AIP) model provides both a way to explain EMDR therapy’s treatment effects and guide appropriate applications of the therapy to a variety of presenting symptoms.
The implications of the AIP model for EMDR therapy are explained below.
Most current symptoms are derived from earlier life experiences that set in motion a continued pattern of behaviors, affect, feelings, and thoughts
Traumatic and disturbing life experiences get linked in the brain with their original thoughts, feelings, images, and body sensations. The response toward those events was a natural response at the time of the event. It was an attempt to adapt to a difficult situation. According to the AIP, people are not biologically broken. They are stuck because of the way disturbing life experiences are linked in their nervous system. Once this information is accessed and reprocessed, the adaptive information system is relinked and a more positive and empowering understanding of the present can surface.
For example, a person who experienced bullying as a child might experience current thoughts of not feeling good enough and being anxious in their professional life even if the person does not think about the past experience of bullying anymore. Through EMDR therapy they can reprocess those memories so they can begin to appreciate their current skills and abilities instead of being stuck with the view of the past.
“When an event has been sufficiently processed, we remember it but do not experience the old emotions or sensations in the present. We are informed by our memories, not controlled by them.” (Shapiro, 2018, p.3).
The brain wants to restore mental health in the same way the rest of the body is physiologically configured to heal when injured
When someone cuts their finger while cooking, this person does not have to consciously think about their white cells and all the internal systems in place for healing. The brain and the body automatically do work together to close and heal the wound. However, if a foreign object blocks the healing, the pain will continue and this person might need the support of another person to remove the object. Once the block is removed, the healing will resume. EMDR therapists support people to remove blockages so the natural processing of information may continue.
EMDR is primarily a client-centered model. Although some clients might experience some disturbance during treatment, this distress is temporary and transitional while the brain makes connections to more adaptive information. For example, a person might think that a car accident is their fault, even though it was the other driver who ran the red light. They might feel guilty, even though they know cognitively that they are not at fault. Through EMDR procedures and dual bilateral stimulation, the brain makes connections to more adaptive information such as the fact that there was no possible way to guess that another person was going to run a red light.
The AIP directs the therapeutic process and gives clients hope
Treatment does not focus only in coping with the current symptoms or presentations. EMDR therapists look to the experiences or events that drive these behaviors, feelings, thoughts, urges, or physical reactions. The guiding question for treatment is: what are the circumstances or experiences in this person’s life that cause them to respond in such a way now?
Similar experiences get linked to those previously linked memories and are the basis for current maladaptive interpretations, feelings, and behaviors. The reprocessing of a memory causes a shift in all components of it including sense of timing, age, symptoms, reactive behaviors and sense of self, not only on a cognitive level but also on a physiological level (Shapiro, 2018).
For example, a client who witnessed physical abuse by his father toward his mother might be stuck on the thought that he “should have defended her” even though he was just 10-years-old. These might cause current feelings of powerlessness and anger toward himself or others. Through EMDR therapy, those two parts of the memory become connected and he can feel more self-understanding around the fact that he did everything he could as a child. This gives a message of hope because the client can see their current symptoms as result of learned behaviors that can be unlearned.
EMDR therapists use the tenets of the AIP model to conceptualize cases and guide treatment planning. Utilizing the AIP model facilitates the ability of many EMDR therapists to achieve substantial and comprehensive treatment effects (Shapiro, 2018).
“EMDR therapy targets the unprocessed memories that contain the negative emotions, sensations and beliefs. By activating the brain’s information processing system [AIP], the old memories can then be “digested.” Meaning what is useful is learned, what’s useless is discarded.” (Shapiro, 2013, p.6).
What's the next step?
Find an EMDR Therapist in Your Area
The EMDRIA "Find an EMDR Therapist Directory" is an up-to-date resource to find EMDRIA members providing EMDR therapy in your area. The directory includes searches by location, name, and other criteria.
Want to learn more about EMDR therapy?
Introduction to EMDR Therapy
In this video, learn what it’s like to experience EMDR therapy and how the therapy is widely recognized by trusted organizations.
Thinking about EMDR Therapy?
What does EMDR therapy look like? This short video for clients explains the 8 Phases of EMDR Therapy and what they might experience in EMDR therapy sessions.
8 Phases of EMDR Therapy Infographic
Discover the 8 phases of EMDR Therapy to treat traumatic events. From history and treatment plan to reevaluation and more.
Infografía de las 8 fases de la terapia EMDR
Descubre las 8 fases de la Terapia EMDR para tratar eventos traumáticos. Desde la historia y plan de tratamiento hasta la reevaluación y mas.
Citations
Bergmann, U. (2019). Neurobiological foundations for EMDR practice. Springer Publishing Company.
Shapiro, F. (2013). Getting past your past: Take control of your life with self-help techniques from EMDR therapy (p. 352). New York, NY: Rodale Press.
Shapiro, F. (2018). Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy: Basic principles, protocols, and procedures (3rd ed.). Guilford.
More Resources
Find more AIP model resources in the EMDRIA Library.
Special thanks to our members Sharon Rollins, Uri Bergmann, and Mark Nickerson for their invaluable feedback regarding this page.
