Oregon Cognitive Network
Criteria for Cognitive Programs
Carl Reddick    ©

For the purposes of the Oregon Cognitive Network, the term ‘cognitive’ will refer to a primary treatment or education method designed to change both how the offender thinks and also leads the offender to practice the behavioral expression of this new way of thinking. Cognitive programs will, at their  core, recognize that an offender’s very thinking patterns are flawed. To successfully engage the offender in any type of future education, therapy, punishment, or sober lifestyles,  these flaws must be identified, defined, faced, and changed. This change is always in the offender’s best interest in that the goal is to structure pro-social patterns of not only thinking, but future behavior. 

It is not the intent of, nor is it the goal, of the Cognitive Network to define social or psychological research or enter debates about approaches of methodology or program implementation. Our purpose is to further the availability and efficacy of cognitive programming, specifically within the offender population, and within social service agencies in general. 

There are at least four stages of cognitive programming. 

1) Cognitive restructuring: For our purposes, this is defined as introducing the concept that our thinking drives our behavior. This is often called the ‘motivation piece’. For any therapy to be maximized, the offender’s veil, belief window, barrier, concept of self, or defense mechanism must be logically identified. This is never a confrontational process. This process usually will focus on the ‘results’ of the offender’s  thinking and then moving her toward her desired goals. When the goals are identified, current behavior and attitudes are explored. When the behavior is identified, the concept of ‘our thoughts’ about this behavior is introduced. Focus is constantly on the thoughts that drive the behavior, not the behavior itself. The presentation style is often didactic.

2) Cognitive Skills: The second step in this process is building cognitive skills. Often called the ‘education piece’, this is an essential process that advances the original restructuring effort. This piece will actually teach problem solving using the cognitive process that was addressed in step one. There will be exercises and homework. This portion often involves written journal entries, identification of the thinking process that leads to certain emotions, and an increased awareness of habituated responses to certain stimuli (police, drugs, employment, for example).

3) Cognitive/Behavioral Sessions: The third step is to put the learned skills into practice. This portion usually consists of ‘practical applications’. Now that cognition has been separated from thoughts, attitudes, and preconceptions,  changing offender behavior becomes a possibility. It is one thing to teach the concepts, it is another to put them into practice. The goal of these types of programs is to model pro-social behavior and use actual applications so the offenders can practice these newly learned skills. These skills will include resolving moral dilemmas (rather than debating them). It will also role play the social learning theory skills learned in step two. This will involve graduated practice, feedback, and reinforcement of approval and disapproval. 

4) Cognitive Therapy: Ideally this would be the marriage of ‘personal issues’ therapy with cognitive programming to change present thinking. ‘Personal issues’ would include, but not be limited to alcohol, drug, anger, domestic violence, criminal thinking, self-worth, sex abuse, and self-limitation issues. This could include a therapeutic community, generic group or individual sessions, residential treatment, or any combination of the above. It could be available both in-custody and out-of-custody. It may access other models such as a medical model, but the emphasis would always be on ‘cognition leading to behavior’. 

Suggestions for certification by the Cognitive Change Network: The Cognitive Network recognizes the fact that individual programs may attempt more than one of the above steps. However, it is incumbent on the applicants that they identify the stage or stages they are addressing.