An Online Theft / Shoplifting class

An 4 or 8 hour Theft / Shoplifting class that you can stop and start anytime you want - on your schedule! This Theft / Shoplifting class is completely self-paced, sign out and come back later, the computer will take you back to where you ended. That's right, work on it a half hour at a time, more sometimes, less others - you choose.

Less Expensive: One fee, no added fees. Our online Theft / Shoplifting class sets an industry standard as one of the nation's premier provider of online Theft / Shoplifting classes. We also offer 4 or 8 hour Impulse Control and Theft Class for those required to take a Theft / Shoplifting class or an Impulse Control and theft Class.Take an shoplifting class

Online Shoplifting Class Register Here

About Us

At Outcome Alternatives® we are quite proud of what we have accomplished. THEFT TALK™ was founded in 1983 through the combined 44 years of experience of a parole officer, a juvenile probation officer, two college instructors and a justice system policy analyst. Each of these roles contributed greatly to the style, delivery and content of our Theft / Shoplifting class.

Over the years, "THEFT TALK"™ has received national recognition in magazines such as Seventeen, The Lookout, The Business Journal, Consumer Reports' Zillions Magazine, The New Yorker and Counseling Today. HBO and MSNBC have  featured our services.  US News and World Report did a story on "Theft Talk"™ in October 2008.

The underlying concepts of "THEFT TALK"™ Counseling Service originated between 1975 and 1983. Two Juvenile Court Counselors, Steve Houseworth, MA and Patrick Murphy, felt ineffective as they worked within the juvenile justice system and set out to improve their skills. Originally while dealing with juvenile offenders, these men, like the majority of correctional personnel, focused on the deed, stressed consequences and assumed the offender knew what was wrong with stealing. Later, out of personal interest and frustration at watching offenders recycle themselves, they decided to research and specialize in theft counseling. "THEFT TALK's"™ theory and philosophy is outlined in our approach page.

For a comparison Steve and Patrick began to conduct research with non-delinquent youth and responsible adults. Rather than find a disparity in values and attitudes among the various groups, they discovered a pattern of responses so similar, they were forced to conclude this problem of theft is so ingrained in today's society its essence is rarely addressed or understood. Basically what we as a society have taught people is "don't get caught, get good."

Thousands of theft offenders later, this exciting program has undergone many changes. Feeling the results of their study and research was too important to keep to themselves, Steve and Patrick founded a corporation, "THEFT TALK"™ Counseling Service Inc., a nonprofit corporation. Since March of 1983 "THEFT TALK"™ Counseling Service Inc. has been a nonprofit corporation and actively involved in theft diversion and prevention counseling throughout Oregon. More recently, the "THEFT TALK"™ Counseling Service Inc. Board of Director's business plan calls for a nationwide presence. To that end the Board was made aware of, and approved, of a plan to create "THEFT TALK"™ Online Services (the nonprofit) and later Outcome Alternatives®.

Our staff are frequently asked how we talk people out of stealing. Our answer to this question is that we do not try to talk people out of stealing. Instead, we recognize that we cannot control their behavior nor make their decisions for them. Further, we realize that threatening, trying to scare, or educating on the possible consequences of stealing has continuously proven to be an ineffective intervention. We find our clients are much less resistant once they learn we do not judge them and we genuinely admit our position of powerlessness. A pleasant benefit of this position is that it diffuses the more traditional power struggle between "The System" and "The Offender".

Our position is that it is undesirable and unrealistic for our communities to have cameras, police, security tags, mirrors, etc., everywhere in a persons world. Though this approach proves very effective for individual merchants, it has very little effect on the motivations of those who are inclined to steal or shoplift, (they simply choose a different store).

We believe the pursuit of self pleasure appears to be a very human trait. With this in mind, and without human intervention, stealing should predictably be a world wide phenomenon, (as it is). Further, living in a country which cherishes its freedom of choice, or one which has few social boundaries, would likely demonstrate higher incidences of theft.

Instead of thinking about stealing as a behavior that does not make sense, we have been successful at trying to understand how it does make sense - at least to the theft offender. Our human intervention is to encourage our clients to examine their own thinking, their attitudes and beliefs.

We try to get our clients to understand how stealing makes (or made) sense to them. "THEFT TALK"™, while continuing to respect the autonomy of the individual, focuses on THINKING. We tell our clients they do not need to agree with anything we say. We only ask that they take the time to understand. At the point where we accept and respect one another we are well positioned to look for thinking errors and for the client to examine his or her own attitudes, values and beliefs. Once this genuine inventory and examination has been completed the client is well positioned to be able to self correct - IF, he or she chooses.

"THEFT TALK"™ uses an evidence based cognitive restructuring approach in all of the services it offers.  Though our class material is heavily laced with content which addresses thinking errors, the classes are not marketed as "thinking error" classes.  If the person referring is wanting the client to be exposed to a class which introduces thinking errors and focuses on the different types of thinking errors our theft class would not meet that standard.  If, however, the referring person wants the person being referred to be exposed to specific thinking errors (and omissions) related to stealing and to have those thinking errors confronted and corrected, then our programs and services meet that standard quite well.

Some of the key thinking errors focused on in the "THEFT TALK"™ curriculum deal with the offenders focus on trying not to get caught, an attempt to avoid punishment vs impact on the victim as the primary force driving decision making, "License", the thinking a person has which gives him/her permission to steal, Circular Thinking (failure to think of the victim), empathy development and developing an in depth understanding as to why stealing is wrong and an aggressive confrontation regarding an introspective character assessment.

As you may know, getting results with offenders is no easy task. We don't make ridiculous claims like a 95% success rate but we do know that we use best practices. We address the criminogenic risk factor - attitudes, values and beliefs. The "Theft Talk"™ program addresses victim issues, accountability and personal responsibility. Our approach is the most effective intervention - cognitive restructuring - and based on the ground breaking work outlined in "The Psychology of Stealing" by our founder Steven M. Houseworth, MA. Mr. Houseworth is a consultant for Outcome Alternatives®. Listed below are the objectives of our program.

OBJECTIVE 1: Empowerment: To assist the client in developing a sense of personal responsibility for each decision they make. Prior to completing our online course each client will acknowledge they are the only one who can stop themselves from stealing.

OBJECTIVE 2: Education: To inform each client of the impact stealing has on others. The purpose is to have each client perceive theft quite differently from how it is typically perceived. In this regard, the second objective is to provide each client with specific information and skills to include in their decision making process. Prior to completing the course each client will associate stealing with the actual impact it always has on others.

OBJECTIVE 3: Victim Awareness: To have each client consider the value he/she places on “others”. This third objective entails having the offender look into him/her self, introspectively and weigh the value placed on SELF vs. the value placed on OTHERS. We are not trying to build the offenders self image. We recognize the importance of this however, our focus is on developing an OTHERS image.

OBJECTIVE 4: Empathy Development: To have each client consider the value he/she places on "others." This objective entails having the offender look into him/herself, introspectively and weigh the value placed on SELF vs. the value placed on OTHERS. Prior to, and long after completing the course each client will question themselves - asking, seriously, how important they believe others really are.

We know that of the thousands of clients who have gone through - and successfully completed - our Theft / Shoplifting program, 86% do not re-offend with a new theft related offense within one year. We are proud of our work and expect you will be pleased too.

As you can probably tell by now, the theory, philosophy and techniques of "THEFT TALK"™ are quite unique, specialized and effective. The primary intervention used is referred to as cognitive restructuring.

Again, welcome to the "THEFT TALK"™ web page provided by Outcome Alternatives. Please take the time to peruse all our pages, we think they will prove to be of interest to you.

What:

An online Theft / Shoplifting class.

Who:

For adult or juvenile clients who need to complete a Theft / Shoplifting class, required by a court / probation officer / retailer / school / other persons, or for anyone who wants to get Theft / Shoplifting help on their own.

When:

Anytime, at the client's convenience.

Program Description:

This Theft / Shoplifting class is for people who have been involved in a Theft / Shoplifting related incident. This Theft / Shoplifting course is appropriate for mandated clients who are required to attend a Theft / Shoplifting education class or for those seeking Theft / Shoplifting help on their own. The student works through several chapters and is tested after each assignment and again at the conclusion of the Theft / Shoplifting course. A Certificate of Completion is activated at the conclusion of the course and can be printed and used as confirmation of completion. This Theft / Shoplifting class is not intended, or adequate, for people who are repeated serious offenders; those with a diagnosed antisocial personality disorder; the seriously mentally ill or impaired, (i.e., psychotic or under the influence of drug/alcohol), brain damaged, are unable to grasp or learn new ideas.

Online Shoplifting Class Register Here

 

Outcome Alternatives® Theft / Shoplifting classes

Outcome Alternatives® provides Theft / Shoplifting classes as a 4 hour Theft / Shoplifting class or an 8 hour Theft / Shoplifting class. The Theft / Shoplifting curriculum is based on, "The Psychology of Stealing" by our founder, Steven Michael Houseworth, MA. Our Theft / Shoplifting classes do not focus on laws and punishments - you already know stealing is illegal. A key component of an effective Theft / Shoplifting class is to educate the student about the dangers of mental rehearsing theft behaviors. No Theft / Shoplifting class would be complete if it did not provide new, meaningful and useful information. Our Theft / Shoplifting classes work under the assumption that the way a person thinks guides the way a person behaves. The "Theft Talk"™ class use a cognitive restructuring approach which basically follows the tenant of Norman Vincent Peale (1898 - 1993): "Change your thoughts and you will change your world." Our Theft / Shoplifting classes ask the client to explore their attitudes, values and beliefs. Each of our Theft / Shoplifting classes end asking the client to figure out what they believe, who they are and to identify their value system. To this end, our Theft / Shoplifting classes have a victim focus and work toward understanding and developing empathy.

The "Theft Talk"™ class began in 1983. As practitioners in the criminal justice field it it only made sense to focus on a specialty of theft since most crimes are theft related - theft, shoplifting, burglary, unauthorized use of a vehicle, burglary, robbery, etc.. Our first Theft / Shoplifting class was called "Theft Talk"™ and we quickly learned that conducting Theft / Shoplifting classes is a formidable task. Initially we spent most of our time on techniques and, through trial and error, our Theft / Shoplifting class evolved into the Theft / Shoplifting class it is today. Our education, the volumes or research and practice has proven that a Theft / Shoplifting class has little likelihood of being effective unless a key component is included - the attitudes, values and beliefs of the person with the Theft / Shoplifting problem. Theft / Shoplifting clients need to change their thinking if they want to to change their behavior.

What are you going to try to do to me in your Theft / Shoplifting class?

Strangely enough this Theft / Shoplifting question is quite important! It is of high importance to "Theft Talk"™ that we don't try to do anything to you. Our Theft / Shoplifting classes do not try to fix you. Our Theft / Shoplifting classes do not judge you. Our Theft / Shoplifting classes do not try to force anything on you and have no intent of imposing change on you. Critical to the success of our theft class is the need to: a) be respectful of the client, b) not be judgmental of the client, c) not try to impose "the truth" on the client and d) not try to impose change on the client. Our Theft / Shoplifting class is education oriented and works under the assumption that if you learn you will change your thoughts. If you change your thoughts you will change your behavior, your life and your world. Yes, with great confidence we are strong believers in education, we attribute education to have converted the human animal to the human being. Any change that comes as a result of taking our Theft / Shoplifting classes is change that the client makes. We can take credit for providing meaningful information; the client needs to take credit for changing his/her Theft / Shoplifting behavior. Life gets much better, much happier and becomes more fulfilling once Theft / Shoplifting problems are in the past.

Okay, it is education based, so what can I expect to learn in this Theft / Shoplifting classes?

Our Theft / Shoplifting classes are based on the book by Steven Michael Houseworth, MA, "The Psychology of Stealing." The Theft / Shoplifting class curriculum finds a balance between providing new information and providing Theft / Shoplifting "stuff" you can try, work on, use to deal with a Theft / Shoplifting problem. The education component explains theft in a way you have likely never heard before and then moves right on to asking you to rethink Theft / Shoplifting beliefs you may have that are not true.

What is the best way to take a Theft / Shoplifting class?

Theft / Shoplifting classes come in many forms. The old traditional counselor in a chair method of dealing with people with Theft / Shoplifting problems may be right for you. Counselors, psychologists and some social workers offer their services and, if you have insurance or can afford their fees, you would do well to explore that route. Personally, I recommend a counselor or psychologist for theft issues.

Another popular way to take a Theft / Shoplifting class is by attending an in person Theft / Shoplifting classroom. This form of Theft / Shoplifting class is often available in bigger cities. Basically, there are two forms of in person Theft / Shoplifting classes; there is the Theft / Shoplifting class and the Theft / Shoplifting group . If you don't mind sharing your Theft / Shoplifting problems, or simply prefer a group or classroom setting, a Theft / Shoplifting class or Theft / Shoplifting group might be suited to you.

"Theft Talk"™ offers two other forms of Theft / Shoplifting classes. Our Theft / Shoplifting classes are offered as an online Theft / Shoplifting class or a Theft / Shoplifting workbook (study at home). As previously noted our Theft / Shoplifting classes are educational in nature. One huge benefit of an online Theft / Shoplifting class is fidelity. Online Theft / Shoplifting classes are delivered consistently the same way for each client and eliminate natural human errors and omissions.

Our workbook Theft / Shoplifting class consists of the same content as the online class but is in a workbook format versus online.

Tell me about the online Theft / Shoplifting class.

It really is pretty simple. The first thing you do is get registered so you can take your online Theft / Shoplifting class - it's free to register, (create an account). Try not to register more than one time, you will likely lose track of usernames and passwords and need to call our help center.

When you register you will be asked to input your email address. This becomes important because after you register for the online Theft / Shoplifting class you will be sent an auto generated email confirming your registration. If you don't get an email right away we suggest you check your spam or junk-mail to see if it is there. You will also be asked for the email address of the person who referred you to our Theft / Shoplifting class (If you have it). It is usually worth taking the time to get that person's email address because that person is sent a confirmation that you got registered for the Theft / Shoplifting class and again when you complete your Theft / Shoplifting class.

Once you are registered you need to pick the Theft / Shoplifting class you want to take: The juvenile or adult version; the impulse control version; the petit theft version (same class but different certificate); the 4 hour class, the 8 hour class.

Pick your class, click on the PayPal/Credit Card icon to pay for your Theft / Shoplifting class and you are ready to go.

Are there added costs or other things to buy?

The "Theft Talk"™ Online Theft / Shoplifting classes are 100% online. There are no additional items to buy and there are no added costs.

Will the "Theft Talk"™ class be accepted by the person who referred me to a Theft / Shoplifting class?

Outcome Alternatives® is a nationwide premier provider of online Theft / Shoplifting classes and has been accepted in every state in the country. That said, there is no national standard for Theft / Shoplifting classes and any judge, probation officer or employer can accept a Theft / Shoplifting class or reject it. We do offer a money back guarantee (be sure to read the details) if our online Theft / Shoplifting class is not accepted.

Can I really take my Theft / Shoplifting class anytime - day or night?

That's right! You can take your Theft / Shoplifting class anytime, day or night, 23 hours a day 7 days a week. You also only need to work on your Theft / Shoplifting class for as long as you want to. Stop and start when you want - the system will remember where you last ended your Theft / Shoplifting class.

Are your Theft / Shoplifting class exams difficult to pass?

Our exams do have fairly high standards. If you want to be sure to successfully complete any one chapter in your online Theft / Shoplifting class you will very likely pass the exam if you simply read the material in that chapter. The only people who report our Theft / Shoplifting class exams to be problematic are the people who tried "skimming" without learning. Our exams are typically reported to be easy after the person actually reads the chapter.

What if I need help, have a problem or need support?

Support for our Theft / Shoplifting customers is very important to Outcome Alternatives®. We offer email support seven days a week 15 hours a day. We provide phone support 10 hours a day on weekdays. We are often available by phone on weekends. You can email support@thefttalk.com and you will typically get a response in one hour or less.

How do I get my Theft / Shoplifting class completion certificate?

After you have completed all of your Theft / Shoplifting class a Completion Certificate is immediately activated and made available to you. If you want Outcome Alternatives® to mail or email you a certificate, just ask - no added fee. Mailed Theft / Shoplifting class Completion Certificates are embossed and can be sent directly to the person who referred you to our Theft / Shoplifting class.

 

Register for your Theft Class Here
 

A Really Good Choice

Our Theft / Shoplifting class is a convenient way to complete a court ordered, PO, diversion or school required program.

You can take the class from any location in the United States, Europe, Canada or Australia with a computer and internet access. There is nothing to download or print, simply register, log in, pay and begin your class.

Our Courses Include:

24 hour access to your class

Immediate Proof of Enrollment

Nothing to download

Start and stop at any time - work at your pace on your timelines

Use home computer or public library

A world class learning experience

User friendly

Support by phone weekdays, by email 7 days a week

Free Certificate of Completion immediately available upon completion

Our Philosophy

Change your thoughts and you change your world .

~Norman Vincent Peale
(1898 - 1993)

Learn about our money back guarantee

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