Sex Offenders
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This group is a co-ed group designed for residents who have committed sexual offenses. In addition, many offenders have been sexually abused themselves.
The therapeutic focus of the group is on individual accountability and personal responsibility, with a broad goal of living and building positive relationships with others. Residents are asked to take a “fearless moral inventory” in evaluating the ways in which they have used, abused, and manipulated others. Through the process of working through a 10 step psycho-educational workbook, residents evaluate their own abuse cycles, and the circumstances, thoughts, and feelings which contributed to their offenses.
The group focuses on: the offense, the cycle of power and control, the thinking errors that contributed to the offense, and on how they live and manage their own lives. This addresses self-esteem, self-respect, relationships with others, and learning how to cope with problems and feelings. The group is feedback oriented, reality based, and emphasizes openness and honesty. Each member is responsible for their own behavior and for confronting others who are not “walking the walk.”
The cottage staff is trained to recognize and correct, on an on-going basis, the errors of thinking, behavior, and relational problems that are exhibited by these residents. They provide feedback to the group leaders about the extent to which each resident is “living what they are learning” in the group. The goal is to encourage social and emotional responsibility in their interactions with others.