posted 01-05-2008 11:07 AM            

Psydoc (12/30/06):

quote:

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I’m new to this forum, so forgive me if anything in my post breaks protocol. I direct this message to Ebvan in response to his thoughts on therapy

I doubt there are many psychotherapist who believe they are helping each of the sex offenders they work with. We recognize the criminal mind-set and their want to manipulate and control. It is true, however, that in order to successfully complete a sex offender program, they must learn the basics of thinking errors, take a personal inventory of the cost/benefit of their behaviors, and endure a couple years attending weekly sessions. During which time they are given the tools to change their behavior. We do not usually view sex offenses as something that is “curable” but rather as a choice.

I am a clinical psychologist (Ph.D.) and a polygraph examiner. I’ve conducted just over a thousand post conviction sex offender polygraphs, and have literally, only a few exams with what I believed to be questionable results. While the current position on treatment provider and polygraph examiner is that to do both is a conflict of interest: I disagree. I use a variety of test instruments and personally see the polygraph as an effective treatment tool.

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Welcome Psydoc.

Great to have you here. This is a great place for learning all kinds of useful and useless things about polygraph, motorcycles, machine guns and more. Its also a great place to meet polygraph professionals from different jurisdictions. Admid all the foolery, its evident that we all take our work seriously. Polygraph examiners have at times become isolated in programmatic or jurisdictional practices, and that can make us look silly, uninformed, or inconsistent if we're not careful. Plus, any profession that is positioned to be the holder of truth, integrity, and honesty, is inherently at risk for arrogance and grandiosity. Then there is the potential impact of staring daily at the volume of human ugliness that comes with sex offenders, other criminals, and dangerous persons. I believe we are a more coherent and aware profession for getting to know each other through this forum.

Great people here.

We've already come a long way from the days when examiners from different shops, in my area, were reluctant to show there chart to each other for fear of criticism. We've had people post questions, and entire charts to this forum. I learn something every day.

Sorry for the late welcome. I was away for a couple days, and still catching up.

A Question:

Do you conduct polygraph exams on your own therapy clients?

r

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"Gentlemen, you can't fight in here. This is the war room."
--(Stanley Kubrick/Peter Sellers - Dr. Strangelove, 1964)