Professionals

For clinicians, advocates, and researchers

The Chestnut Classification
of Coercive Control Mechanisms

A structured clinical framework for identifying, assessing, and treating the seven mechanisms of coercive control. Developed from lived experience and designed for professional application.

Chestnut, S. (2026)  |  Restored Autonomy Foundation™

Framework overview

Why a classification matters

Coercive control is widely recognized as a pattern of behavior, but rarely classified with the specificity required for clinical assessment, structured intake, or evidence-based intervention. The CC-7 framework addresses this gap.

The Chestnut Classification organizes coercive control into seven distinct mechanisms across four operational domains, each mapped to observable clinical indicators, validated screening prompts, and a corresponding shame architecture that mediates the psychological impact.

This framework is not a diagnostic instrument. It is a clinical assessment and psychoeducation tool designed to give practitioners structured language for what their clients are describing — and to give survivors a map of what was done to them.

Three components: The CC-7 Classification Taxonomy (mechanism identification), the SA-7 Shame Architecture (internalized impact mapping), and the KA-7 Keys of Autonomy (recovery pathway framework). Together these form The Restored Autonomy Method™.

Classification system

CC-7 Taxonomy

Seven mechanisms organized into four operational domains. Each mechanism is assigned a classification code for use in clinical documentation, case formulation, safety planning, and structured psychoeducation.

Chestnut Classification of Coercive Control Mechanisms

CC-7 v2.1
Domain A — Psychological destabilization
CC-1
Emotional Terrorism™
Systematic deployment of unpredictable affective states to maintain target hypervigilance. Characterized by cyclical alternation between reward and punishment stimuli, producing conditioned dependency through intermittent reinforcement schedules.
CC-1.1Affective cycling (love-bombing / withdrawal)
CC-1.2Rage deployment and emotional punishment
CC-1.3Ambient threat maintenance
CC-2
Gaslighting & Reality Distortion™
Deliberate manipulation of the target's epistemic framework through persistent contradiction of perceived experience. Results in progressive erosion of self-trust, memory confidence, and perceptual reliability.
CC-2.1Memory invalidation
CC-2.2Perception denial
CC-2.3Consensus manufacturing (third-party corroboration)
Domain B — Environmental restriction
CC-3
Isolation & Confinement™
Progressive reduction of the target's social, professional, and familial contact networks. Functions to eliminate external reality-testing resources, reduce access to support systems, and consolidate informational monopoly.
CC-3.1Social network attrition
CC-3.2Mobility restriction
CC-3.3Information control
CC-4
Identity Destruction™
Systematic dismantling of the target's self-concept, autonomous preferences, and internal value system. Produces progressive identity diffusion and replacement of self-directed cognition with controller-referent decision-making.
CC-4.1Preference erasure
CC-4.2Competence undermining
CC-4.3Identity replacement
Domain C — Resource weaponization
CC-5
Financial Weaponization™
Exploitation of economic systems to establish material dependency. Includes income restriction, asset concealment, debt instrumentalization, and employment sabotage to eliminate target's capacity for autonomous action.
CC-5.1Income restriction / employment sabotage
CC-5.2Asset concealment / debt instrumentalization
CC-5.3Allowance-based economic control
CC-6
Sexual Coercion & Boundary Violation™
Violation of bodily autonomy through coerced compliance, boundary erosion, and instrumentalization of physical intimacy as a control mechanism. Operates through guilt induction, punishment contingencies, and normalization of non-consensual contact.
CC-6.1Consent erosion / coerced compliance
CC-6.2Intimacy as punishment / reward
CC-6.3Reproductive coercion
Domain D — Systemic leverage
CC-7
Weaponization of Children™
Deployment of parental bonds, custody dynamics, and child welfare as instruments of coercive leverage. Includes triangulation, parentification, loyalty manipulation, and institutional exploitation of family court systems.
CC-7.1Custody threat / legal system weaponization
CC-7.2Child-as-informant / surveillance proxy
CC-7.3Parental identity erosion / guilt weaponization
Chestnut, S. (2026). The Seven Mechanisms of Coercive Control: A Classification Framework for Clinical Assessment and Survivor Education. Restored Autonomy Foundation.

Clinical instrument

CC-7 Screening Matrix

Structured intake and case formulation instrument. Maps each mechanism to observable clinical indicators, validated screening prompts, severity classification, and corresponding shame architecture correlates.

Acute / safety-critical
Chronic / cumulative
Latent / emerging
Code Mechanism Observable indicators Screening prompt SA-7
CC-1 Emotional Terrorism Hypervigilance, startle response, affect dysregulation, fawning behaviors, somatic complaints (GI distress, tension headaches, chest tightness) "Do you find yourself monitoring someone else's mood before you speak or act?" Existence shame
CC-2 Gaslighting / Reality Distortion Chronic self-doubt, decision paralysis, compulsive documentation (screenshots, recordings), dissociative episodes, excessive apologizing "Do you keep records to prove things happened the way you remember?" Perception shame
CC-3 Isolation / Confinement Social network attrition, inability to name emergency contacts, location monitoring compliance, loss of independent transportation "Has your social world gotten smaller since this relationship began?" Connection shame
CC-4 Identity Destruction Inability to articulate preferences, loss of hobbies/interests, deference to partner's opinions as own, flat affect when discussing self "If I asked you what you want — separate from anyone else — could you answer?" Identity shame
CC-5 Financial Weaponization No independent bank access, inability to account for household finances, employment sabotage history, allowance-based spending "Do you have access to money that no one else controls?" Material shame
CC-6 Sexual Coercion Somatic pelvic complaints, sexual aversion or compulsive compliance, inability to articulate consent boundaries, dissociation during contact "Has saying 'no' to physical intimacy ever had consequences you wanted to avoid?" Body shame
CC-7 Weaponization of Children Parental identity erosion, child-reported loyalty conflicts, custody threat history, children as informational conduits "Have your children ever been used to deliver messages, monitor you, or make you feel guilty?" Maternal shame
Administration protocol: Administer during structured intake or when coercive control dynamics are suspected. Score presence (0–4) per mechanism. A score of 2+ on any single mechanism warrants full CC-7 assessment. Co-occurring elevation across 3+ mechanisms indicates systemic coercive control pattern.
Chestnut, S. (2026). CC-7 Clinical Screening Matrix. Restored Autonomy Foundation. Proprietary instrument — licensed use only.

For your practice

Practitioner certification

The CC-7 framework is designed for integration into existing clinical practice, agency training, and survivor advocacy programs. Practitioners who complete the Restored Autonomy certification program receive:

Licensed use of the CC-7 Screening Matrix for clinical intake and case formulation.

The Restored Autonomy Method™ training curriculum for psychoeducation delivery in individual and group settings.

Access to the SA-7 Shame Architecture assessment tools for mapping internalized impact and identifying treatment targets.

Continuing education credits (pending accreditation) for licensed clinicians, certified domestic violence advocates, and social workers.

Bring this framework to your practice

Practitioner certification, agency licensing, and institutional partnerships are available. Contact us to discuss integration.

Inquire About Certification

The CC-7 Classification, SA-7 Shame Architecture, KA-7 Keys of Autonomy, The Restored Autonomy Method™, and all associated terminology are proprietary to the Restored Autonomy Foundation™. Reproduction, adaptation, or deployment without written authorization is prohibited.

If you or someone you know is in immediate danger, call 911.  |  National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-7233

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