A BEHAVIORAL APPROACH WAS USED TO TREAT SMALL GROUPS OF CHILDREN IN AN INNER CITY SETTING. THE GROUPS WERE ORGANIZED UNDER THE AUSPICES OF THE HARTWIG PROJECT OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICE ORGANIZATION OF DETROIT AND CONSISTED OF CHILDREN WITH SCHOOL ADOPTION PROBLEMS, DELINQUENT GANGS, AND CHILDREN FROM DISADVANTAGED SECTIONS OF THE COMMUNITY. GROUPS CONTAINED THREE TO SEVEN CHILDREN BETWEEN THE AGES OF EIGHT AND 15. THEY WERE HOMOGENEOUS IN REGARD TO SEX, AGE, AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC BACKGROUND AND HETEROGENEOUS IN REGARD TO PROBLEMS PRESENTED. BEHAVIORAL ASSESSMENT DETERMINED THE NATURE, FREQUENCY, AND CONDITIONS OF THE MALADAPTIVE BEHAVIORS. ON THE BASIS OF THE MALADAPTIVE BEHAVIORS, GOALS WERE SET FOR EACH GROUP MEMBER. A BASELINE WAS DETERMINED FOR EACH MALADAPTIVE BEHAVIOR SO THAT SUBSEQUENT BEHAVIOR AFTER INTERVENTION BY THE WORKER COULD BE MONITORED FOR CHANGE. MEANS OF INTERVENTION INCLUDED REINFORCEMENT, TOKEN ECONOMY, GROUP ACTIVITIES, BEHAVIORAL ASSIGNMENTS, MODEL PRESENTATION, AND SYSTEMATIC DESENSITIZATION. TREATMENT WAS TERMINATED ON THE BASIS OF ACHIEVEMENT OF TREATMENT GOALS. TO DATE, RESULTS APPEAR PROMISING. CHANGES IN THE DESIRED DIRECTION HAVE BEEN OBSERVED IN A LARGE MAJORITY OF THE MALE CLIENTS, BEHAVIORAL ASSIGNMENTS HAVE BEEN FAVORABLY RECEIVED, AND GROUP WORKERS ARE ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT THE APPROACH. (SK)