This article outlines problems associated with large mental hospitals, describes how knowledge gained from these problems can be used to create alternative treatment programs, and introduces the papers in this special issue on community-based treatment programs for individuals with developmental disabilities. (JDD)

The 11 articles in this monograph, selected from more than 100 presentations made at the National Conference on Transitional Services for Troubled Youth, examine the history, current status, best practices, and future needs of troubled youth who are returning from residential to community settings. The papers are the following: "Transitional…

Five articles address current teaching and programming practices in the education and treatment of behaviorally disordered youth. In "Down the Up Staircase: The Teacher as Therapist," P. Nichols explores the premise that teachers should not limit their potential as child helpers by excluding counseling and psychotherapeutic…

The problem is well known to every parent of a teenager, every high school teacher, every clinical practitioner, and every social policy maker: vulnerable adolescents risk becoming more deviant through association with deviant peers and peer groups. Deviant peer influences are among the most potent factors in the development of antisocial…