The aim of this paper is to describe the development of the Phased Model of Adventure Therapy. Adventure therapy is the use of adventure experiences to engage clients on cognitive, affective and behavioural levels. Use of adventure therapy has been found to improve psychological wellbeing, self- esteem and behaviour in young people. A UK-based…

Charles Hall Youth Services (CHYS), a residential foster-care provider in Bismarck, North Dakota, desired to move from an adult-centered, punitive program model to a strength-based model with an emphasis on teaching critical life skills and behaviors to young clients. Through a partnership with the Teel Institute of Kansas City, Missouri, the…

At least three circumstances have converged to focus attention on the outcomes associated with residential treatment. First, the reduction in lengths of stay in the psychiatric hospital has resulted in residential treatment becoming the most expensive service on a per episode basis. Second, the increasing emphasis on the identification and use of…

Many communities have turned to group homes and residential treatment centers to serve children and adolescents displaying behavioral and/or emotional problems, because most foster parents are not able to deal with such children, and the expense of psychiatric hospitalization is prohibitive. One alternative which has been used very sparingly is…