Cognitive distortion change in boot camp participants

This study compared cognitive distortion change between boot camp participants who received an intervention authored by Samenow (1994), entitled "Commitment to Change" and boot camp participants who did not receive the intervention. The purpose of the study was to determine if there would be a significant difference between the treatment groups and if demographic variables (age, sex, race, grade level of academic achievement, criminal history, drug usage) would be significant in predicting characteristics of a boot camp participant most amenable to change from the intervention and from the boot camp experience. The research was done in 1995 with boot camp participants (N = 99) at the Broward County Division of Community Corrections in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The instrument used as a pretest/posttest in this quasi-experimental study was the How I Think (HIT) questionnaire. Regressions performed revealed no significant difference between those who received the intervention and those who did not. No demographic variables were significant in predicting characteristics of a boot camp participant most amenable to change. The result, however, is inconclusive because of the low power of the statistical test. With longer treatment time, more homogeneous groups, and larger sample size, a false null hypothesis would have been easier to detect. It is suggested that further studies use a larger sample size. Within-group variability could be lessened by age, grade level of academic achievement, criminal history, drug usage, or willingness to participate. The length of time of the intervention should be lengthened to 10 to 15 weeks or presented in the final stage of boot camp when participants, particularly the drug addicted cadets, might be more receptive to examining their distorted thinking. Because cognitive distortions promote disciplinary problems in the educational setting, it is suggested that research be conducted with at-risk students in public schools to determine the effect of a cognitive distortion change intervention program in an educational setting.