What is Cognitive Ergonomics From the Inside Out®, known as Cog-Erg?
What’s obvious depends on what you attend to. When people with ADHD don’t attend to what we think they are supposed to, it is considered a behavioral or moral problem. Thus, current ADHD interventions are based on skills or behavioral training. At times, they are helpful; most times they fall short.
At DIG Coaching, we believe that, if the obvious solution isn’t working, chances are you’re attending to the wrong thing. Consistent with Dr. Russell Barkley’s ADHD construct, we believe ADHD isn’t a behavioral problem but rather an executive function Impairment. In other words, current interventions are attending to the wrong thing.
When you change the lens, everything changes. Cog-Erg is a new lens. It allows us to look past ADHD as a behavioral problem but rather an executive function impairment consistent with Dr. Russell Barkley’s ADHD construct.
What is Cog-Erg?
Cog-Erg is a new paradigm in the field of engineering and a new ADHD intervention. Like all paradigms, it redefines how we look at things and explains many anomalies the current mindset cannot.
Built on Dr. Russell Barkley’s model of executive function and powered by the observational tool AttentionScope®, Cog-Erg reframes ADHD not as a behavioral issue, but as a problem-solving impairment (when done inside of mind).
Cog-Erg is an observational training program using Dr. Barkley’s model and AttentionScope® to make objective observations and taking a Six Sigma approach to accommodating the underlying impairment.
Cognitive Ergonomics From the Inside Out® transforms abstract concepts of cognition into tangible phenomena, revealing causal relationships around intangible accommodations that shift how we understand support for executive function impairments.
What Makes It Different
The current paradigm focuses on behavior change or skills training. While behavior can be changed and skills can be learned, their impact is limited in the face of an underlying impairment. Understanding executive functions as a collection of mind tools used to solve problems, problems being characterized as multifaceted and ambiguous, we can understand why those with ADHD have issues with planning, managing time, and making decisions. If behavior or skills training comes without any accommodation for the impairment, it explains why current interventions fall short.
Cog-Erg is not about an individual conforming to a task. It is about conforming the task to the individual’s cognition by providing accommodations for the impairment based on the individual’s needs.
Why Cog-Erg Matters
Cog-Erg matters because it helps individuals feel safer, boosts their self-esteem and wellbeing, reduces stress, and improves productivity. It also frees them from constantly struggling with their challenges, allowing them to use their energy to develop and share their unique gifts and talents.
Cog-Erg May Be Hard to Grasp
This is not a new strategy; it’s a new paradigm. New paradigms confront old ones by revealing imperfections and proving them to be off the mark. Confirmation bias, which is the brain’s tendency to reject anything that contradicts familiar beliefs, creates discomfort and resistance to accepting evidence supporting the new paradigm (see the Intangible Accommodations Axiom below). More simply, it is hard to grasp a new paradigm if you are looking to interpret it through the lens of old paradigms.
Who It Is For
Cog-Erg is meant for those diagnosed with or impacted by ADHD, including individuals, therapists, Coaches, HR professionals, disability specialists, educators, parents, and anyone who recognizes that current strategies fall short and is ready to understand why.
Disclaimer
People like things that are different; but they don’t like to be wrong. Much of Cog-Erg disproves current beliefs. For that reason, participants will be corrected in class. Not as criticism but as a means to be redirected in order to digest the content properly. This can be uncomfortable. If you are uncomfortable being corrected or are prone to shame, we would discourage you from enrolling in the program.
Substantiating Information to Our Claim
Yes, we are making bold claims. Thus, you have the right, and we have the obligation to educate you on our claims so you can determine if our claims have merit. For an in-depth intellectual summary information around our claims, click here.
To sign up
To learn more or to sign up for Cog-Erg, visit www.cognitive-ergonomics.com.