OUT OF THE RUT - A COGNITIVE-BEHAVIORAL TREATMENT PROGRAM FOR DRIVING-WHILE-DISQUALIFIED OFFENDERS

Driving while disqualified represents a serious and recurrent social p roblem, with approximately 40% of convicted individuals reoffending. T he high relapse (or recidivism) rates in this group are thought to be associated with compulsivity or addictive processes. In this paper we describe a cognitive-behavioural treatment program (relapse prevention ) for offenders convicted of driving while disqualified. This program represents a significant innovation in the rehabilitation of persisten t driving offenders, as in the past most intervention programs have fo cused on driver education and/or alcohol treatment. A major assumption of the relapse-prevention approach is that for many men their driving offences represent a maladaptive response to stressful events such as interpersonal conflict. Therefore, the primary treatment approach rev olves around teaching individuals more effective ways to solve their i nterpersonal problems and to regulate negative affective states.