In many disturbed and abused adolescents, acting out is the alternative to despair. The treatment task is to understand the significance of the acting out and to be able to give it a positive meaning. (Author/SJL)

Describes characteristics of borderline adolescents and reviews diagnostic issues. Uses two case studies to illustrate general treatment strategies that could be useful to clinicians in mental health programs and family courts. (JAC)

In this case study of a residential treatment center for emotionally disturbed adolescents, evaluative data demonstrated that Gestalt Therapy was neither designed nor intended for use in an institutional setting with severely disturbed young adolescents, with people of lower socioeconomic status or of low verbal skill and intelligence. (Author/SJL)