Using Cognitive Processing Therapy in a Correctional Setting

Abstract

Many people who experience a traumatic event also experience some Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) symptoms after the trauma; therefore, this response is considered normal (Resick, Monson, & Chard, 2008b). The difference with individuals who develop clinical levels of PTSD is that they have been unsuccessful in their attempts to incorporate the trauma event into their previously held belief systems. Mr. Brown (not his real name) is a 37 year-old, Caucasian male who has never been married and has no children. Currently, Mr. Brown resides in a Midwestern correctional institution.