| This study examined the effectiveness of a cognitive behavioral program for offenders, Thinking for a Change, in an incarcerated population at a high medium security correctional facility in Oklahoma. Study 1 assessed participants on measures of attitude, including criminal thinking, problem solving ability, social desirability, therapeutic alliance and readiness for change in comparison to those on a waiting list for the program. A pre-post test quasi-experimental design examined assessment results for group differences. Inmates participating in the program did not show greater reductions in criminal thinking, exhibit greater readiness for change or increase their problem solving abilities compared to those who had not yet participated in the program. Study 2 examined measures of behavior, comparing prison misconduct and recidivism rates of the participants from Study 1 to a new matched comparison group of inmates who have not participated in the Thinking for a Change intervention. The inmates participating in the program did not demonstrate fewer misconducts or a lower rate of recidivism compared to the matched comparison group who did not receive the program. |
