What Is Moral Reconation Therapy?

Moral reconation therapy is a type of counseling program that uses behavioral therapy techniques to improve moral reasoning, ethical decision making and moral conduct. This form of therapy is used at Restore Treatment Center as a method for treating substance use disorders and co-occurring disorders.

A considerate amount of the success from moral reconation therapy is due to the versatility of the program, as it can be applied in a variety of treatment programs and educational settings. It has proved to be particularly useful when dealing with clients who show resistance to change and who are seen as difficult to treat.

Over the last several decades, moral reconation therapy has shown to improve addiction treatment outcomes and lower rates of misconduct among patients. One of the main benefits of this therapeutic program is that it enhances personality functioning, meaning that clients complete therapy with a greater sense of self-efficacy, a higher moral reasoning, and an increased sense of purpose.

What Does Moral Reconation Therapy Entail?

Moral reconation therapy is easily applied to addiction treatment and accessible by most, saving both time and resources. It is typically delivered through educational lectures, treatment manuals, one-on-one discussions, workbooks, group activities, and exercises such as journaling.

The main goal of moral reconation therapy is to enhance a person’s personality in terms of both moral and identity development. Behavioral methods are combined with a step-by-step approach, which walks clients through a series of different elements of personality and behavioral improvements.

First, the client is asked to go through a process of confrontation, in which they assess their own self. With the guidance of one of our counselors at Restore Drug Treatment LA, the client’s beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors are analysed and discussed in order to identify both the deficits and assets of addiction treatment.

During group therapy and one-on-one counseling sessions with an appointed Restore counselor, the client will then evaluate their current social relationships. By using exercises, such as written assignments, clients can assess relationships that have been damaged due to substance abuse, and develop a plan to either repair or end those relationships. For example, an addict may seek to fix relationships with family members, but choose to end relationships with friends who they associate with drugs or alcohol.

Throughout the treatment process, moral reconation therapy provides clients with the opportunity to partake in positive, reinforcing activities that reward beneficial behaviors. The more moral development that a client displays, the more positive and bolstering activities they will be welcomed to take part in.

As the process of addiction treatment progresses, clients are encouraged to set goals, break down defense mechanisms, and explore their inner selves. Through individual counseling sessions, group activities, and constructive exercises, clients of Restore Treatment Center are able to explore their goals and ask questions about whether those goals will serve to make them a better, more fully developed, person.

Moral Reconation Therapy Delivers Self-Acceptance and Corrective Thinking

Moral reconation therapy offers activities aimed specifically towards improving self-esteem and enhancing self-concept. Clients who partake in our program at Restore Treatment LA can also benefit other residents, as they may be asked to help peers with their treatment progress, get involved in the community, and work on improving their personal relationships with loved ones.

With an enhanced sense of self, clients are instructed to evaluate how their decision-making is based on feelings associated with pleasure and pain. Clients are taught to delay immediate gratification, such as the kind associated with drug use, in favor of the internal gratification that comes from making moral decisions and helping others.

Goal-oriented activities are ultimately intended to bring a person to a higher state of moral reasoning. The link between moral reasoning and moral behavior is firmly established, with the objective being to encourage people to make choices that cause less harm to themselves and to others. Once this process begins to take place, clients will start to show a decrease in drug-taking and drug-seeking behavior.

Who Should Consider Moral Reconation Therapy For Addiction Treatment?

Moral reconation therapy is a unique treatment method which places more emphasis on morality than other cognitive behavioral strategies. Research has shown that this method improves both moral growth and long-lasting recovery from addiction. People who seek addiction treatment, who also have behavioral problems and trouble with decision making, can greatly benefit from our moral reconation therapy program at Restore Drug Treatment LA.