This article addresses the need for communities to develop integrated service systems for troubled children and youth. The varieties of educational services presently offered are reviewed and found to be inadequate. An integrated service system is proposed, comprised of personal services, services for caregivers and families, educational and…

This article highlights key features of Multisystemic Therapy (MST), a treatment designed to empower caregivers with the skills and resources needed to address behavioral problems and to teach coping skills to youth. The supervisory, consultation, and program practices that support therapist implementation of MST in community-based settings are…

This study of risk characteristics of 100 Illinois children/adolescents with emotional/behavior disorders admitted to programs to prevent the need for residential placements found that most of the children were in single parent families; almost 85% had average or above average intelligence; and almost half were exposed to divorce, poverty,…

This collection of papers presented at a 1996 conference on children's mental health research focuses on studies of family participation. Individual papers have the following titles and authors: (1) "Measuring Satisfaction with Community-Based Services for Children with Severe Emotional Disturbances: A Comparison of Questionnaires for Children and…

Parents (n=121) of children with emotional/behavioral disorders were surveyed to obtain their perceptions of contacts with service agencies and views on design and implementation of comprehensive services. Overall, parents viewed the services favorably. Concerns focused on obtaining information about community services, finding recreational…

This Child and Adolescent Service System Program (CASSP) project implemented by the Division of Children and Youth Services of the Mississippi Department of Mental Health aimed to develop a community-level program to increase knowledge about the effectiveness of different community strategies for the development of improved systems of care for…

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)

A study investigated the outcomes of the Acute Children's Extended Services (ACES) program, a Salt Lake City, Utah, program designed to help children with emotional and behavioral disabilities reintegrate into the community from inpatient or residential care. The study examined outcomes of the ACES program within four domains: access, clinical…

This monograph presents an evaluative description of the Alaska Youth Initiative (AYI), a community-based interagency program serving children and adolescents with severe emotional and behavioral disorders. Principles of the program include a no reject policy and a "wraparound" service delivery approach. The monograph offers information…

This collection of papers presented at a 1996 conference on children's mental health focuses on utilization research. Papers have the following titles and authors: (1) "Information Equity: A Critical Component of Strong Service Systems" (Catherine Batsche and Allison Metcalf); (2) "Utilization of Children's Mental Health Services: Differentiating…

This report is a comprehensive description of Minnesota's children's mental health system. It is designed to provide background and guidance to the Children's Integrated Fund Task Force, to assist local coordinating councils, and to serve policymakers outside of mental health who are increasingly asked to consider problems from an interagency…

This study compiled descriptive data over 7 years on 812 school-age children with serious emotional disturbance (SED), including demographic and family characteristics, level of psychological and adaptive functioning, services received in either residential mental health treatment facilities or community-based special education programs, and…

This monograph is based on experiences of the national Child and Adolescent Service System Program (CASSP) and describes a plan for developing and implementing community based systems of care for children and adolescents with serious emotional disorders and their families. It draws on examples from state mental health plans to illustrate planning…

In recent years the problem of sexually abusive youth has been increasingly recognized as a significant issue in our community. This paper provides a brief overview of the literature that shows sexually abusive youth to be a heterogeneous population. We argue for the development of typologies of adolescent sexual offenders to assist in the guiding…