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Re-conceptualizing Denial Historically, denial has been narrowly viewed as a dichotomous construct that is either present or absent in an offender. This limited perspective characterized denial as an all-or-none phenomenon that is important only in the early phase of treatment. In more thorough evaluations, several intricacies of denial have been revealed. When the issue is explored from a broader framework, there is substantial evidence that denial is more realistically described as a set of mental processes that form a continuum and encompass multiple phenomena that may be present throughout treatment, rather than just at the beginning (Brake & Shannon, 1997; Salter, 1988; Winn, 1996). The FoSOD's measurement of denial builds on this latter conceptualization. It rests on an understanding of denial that incorporates multiple cognitive dimensions that are inversely related to an individual's willingness to assume responsibility for his or her actions. The greater the number of denial-related cognitions evidenced by an individual, the less responsibility the person can be expected to accept for his or her behavior. Conversely, the fewer facets of denial evidenced by an offender, the greater the ownership the individual will take for the offense. This formulation moves beyond the narrower view of denial as simply an obstacle to be removed before treatment can occur, and establishes denial as a set of mental processes directly linked to offenders' acceptance of responsibility for offense-related behavior. This expanded context more explicitly reveals the relationship between denial and accountability, and uncovers the deeper clinical value of accurately measuring denial. The FoSOD allows clinicians to examine the functions of denial both in the commission of the offense and throughout stages of treatment. Specifically, it allows clinicians to begin to distinguish among denial as intentional deceit designed to avoid unwanted consequences, denial as an entrenched defense mechanism, and denial as a manifestation of embedded cognitive distortions associated with deviant sexual interests. Moreover, the scales of the FoSOD operationalize and provide a measure of several specific goals of sexual offender treatment, and capture them in the form of cognitive factors that can either be monitored or selected as treatment targets. As such, the FoSOD not only establishes criteria that more precisely identify particular obstacles interfering with treatment progress, but also provides the clinician with a highly differentiated assessment of the extent to which the offender accepts responsibility for each of the many aspects of his or her offense-related behavior. Use of the FoSOD, then, allows clinicians to objectively monitor and develop strategies for increasing offenders' ownership of their deviant behavior. It also allows the clinician to detect subtle gradations or subtypes of denial that may become focal therapeutic targets at different times in treatment. Next: Applications of the FoSOD |
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