The use of reciprocal behavior contracts with families of behavior-problem adolescents was investigated. Most family contracting to date has involved one-way contracts; that is, the child agrees to certain responsibilities for which he will be reinforced by the parents. A reciprocal contract requires the parents, in addition to the child, to agree…

Although the mental health field tends to underestimate the father's role in the psychological development of the child, eating disordered women reveal a consistent pattern of paternal distance and disengagement that is fundamental to their developmental problems. To examine how the father's emotional and/or physical absence contributed to the…

This paper describes an adventure-based treatment program for court-involved youth who display significant alcohol or drug abuse behavior. Project Choices' clients meet the criteria for drug abuse from the Diagnostic Statistical Manual-Revised (DSM-III-R). The clients reside in Project Choices placement homes during the 8-week treatment and 8-week…

The majority of studies of adolescent parenthood have focused on the relationship between fertility behavior and various social, economic and demographic factors rather than the role of psychological processes in wanting a child. To study the role that motivational factors play in the experiences and processes associated with adolescent…

A model for habilitating mentally retarded adolescent offenders is described. Discussion of historical background indicates a lack of programs for this population. A data-based profile of the population covers range of developmental delay, adaptive behavior scores, social skill development, academic achievement, arrest history, racial composition,…

This collection of papers presented at a 1996 conference on children's mental health research focuses on studies of family participation. Individual papers have the following titles and authors: (1) "Measuring Satisfaction with Community-Based Services for Children with Severe Emotional Disturbances: A Comparison of Questionnaires for Children and…

This paper describes the participants, treatment features and outcomes of a day treatment program for adolescents with emotional and behavioral problems, who had been formally adjudicated "dependent." Characteristics of the 133 adolescents served over a 5-year period are presented along with a chart of referral sources for each year of…

Research has suggested that didactic and values discussions, life skills training, social skills training, and family intervention can reduce heavy drug use. Because subjects display variability in patterns of behavior change, increased understanding of these individual differences could be beneficial to interventions. A preventive intervention…

Over the past decade parent education programs, following either a democratic or behavior modification model, have gained in recognition and support. To investigate the effectiveness of Jean Illsley Clarke's parent education program, Self Esteem: A Family Affair, on self-esteem, conflict resolution, and family togetherness and flexibility, 27…

Family process and peer relationships for boys who showed depressive symptoms with or without co-occurring conduct problems in early adolescence were analyzed in this study. Also examined were outcomes in late adolescence and young adulthood including the relationship with parents and peers and graduation from high school for these boys. The…

This paper reviews the literature on the secondary prevention of delinquency, examining the commonalities that characterize successful programs. The first part reviews standard approaches to secondary prevention of delinquency, such as diversion of responsibility for delinquents from the juvenile justice system to family, school and…

This collection of papers presented at a 1996 conference on children's mental health focuses on early intervention approaches. Papers have the following titles and authors: (1) "Child Maltreatment and Prenatal Exposure to Alcohol and Other Drugs: Some Preliminary Findings" (Patrick A. Curtis and Mary Wood Schneider); (2) "Evaluation…

This report presents two discussions of conceptual and infrastructure issues that state mental health systems serving children with emotional disturbances must consider to make an effective transition towards a managed care organization of services under Medicaid. The first discussion, "Clinical Experiences in Managed Care Implementation for…

This paper provides both a preliminary analysis of a survey on media education in India, and reviews of the research on media education in the western world, the limited media education research already done in India, and the more extensive research that has been done on the sociology of Indian youth and the media. The purpose of the survey was to…

A careful analysis by Zelnik and Kanter of the Department of Population Dynamics at Johns Hopkins disclosed that abortions, unwed teenage pregnancies, venereal diseases, and sexual promiscuity have all increased dramatically in spite of a massive public and private program of contraceptive indoctrination and dissemination. This increase is…