The Wilderness Experience is an innovative, experiential program under New Mexico's Statewide Forensic Treatment System for mentally disordered first offenders and those soon to be released on parole or probation. Developed from the concepts of Outward Bound, criminal offenders undergo an intensive 17-21 day confrontation with their physical,…

Analysis of communicative events between individuals with and without severe disabilities provides evidence that individuals who are often considered "least able to" do indeed communicate. Proposes that embedded in each communicative act, there is a drive toward self-determination, but that in order for self- determination to be actualized,…

This interactive theory of drug use posits that drug-taking behavior is caused by several constellations of intra- and extra-individual forces. Influences interact to modify each other while determining the presence of a variety of lifestyle behaviors including drug and alcohol use. The model grows as new data are collected. (Author/BEF)

Reports data on the personality characteristics of alcoholics in two stages of recovery (short and long term). Subjects were administered the California Psychological Inventory and a biographical data sheet. Results of the analysis clearly indicate the existence of differential patterns of psychological adjustment at each stage of recovery.…

Posthospitalization follow-up data were collected from 52 alcoholic subjects and their collateral informants. Findings suggest that alcoholics who have been hospitalized for detoxification generally provide reliable self-reports of their posttreatment drinking behavior, and that gathering data from collateral informants is an effective method for…

Identity theory is used to organize data gathered from semistructured interviews with parole violators at large (N=25). A typology of absconders bridging clinical and actuarial prediction strategies is proposed. Situational constraints are explored; typical behavior patterns and experiences of parolees are described. Policy implications are…

Sleep patterns of 103 institutionalized individuals with profound mental retardation were explored. Almost 40% were found to have short-sleep patterns. Short-sleep was predicted by blindness; nonshort-sleep was predicted by diagnosis of cerebral palsy and sodium valproate usage. Techniques for minimizing possible negative consequences of…

Much of the concern with juvenile delinquency has been based on the premise that delinquent behavior leads to adult crime. Police and court records of three cohorts comprised of 6,127 persons were analyzed. The most prevalent pattern of delinquent behavior was one of declining seriousness and discontinuation after the teenage period. With few…

Whether methadone maintenance treatment demonstrates cumulative (rehabilitative) or stabilizing effects on behavior of narcotics addicts over multiple treatment episodes was studied involving 993 addicts in a quasi-experimental design. Observed behavioral changes and longitudinal self-reports indicate stabilizing, but not cumulative, effects. (SLD)

Researchers surveyed 78 clients in drug abuse treatment facilities to determine their perceptions regarding factors related to their use and abuse of drugs. About 40% of the sample began using drugs between 11 and 15 years of age. Males tended to begin using drugs at an earlier age than did females. Over 90% of participants reported using drugs…