Four papers offer comments on A. Silverstein's paper on cluster analysis of institutionalized mentally retarded individuals, and Silverstein responds to the commentaries. The commentaries examine the soundness of study goals, usefulness of an adaptive behavior classification system, and feasibility of utilizing adaptive behavior measures to…

Adults with mild and moderate levels of retardation (20 living in institutions and 20 in the community) answered simulated job interview questions. The community group produced a greater number of appropriate answers to both simple and complex questions than did the institutional group. (Author/JDD)

A common belief is that residential treatment of juvenile delinquents reinforces rather than inhibits their patterns of delinquent behavior. Findings of this study clearly indicate that, at least in Israel, incarceration in a residential treatment facility did not increase the level of delinquency among the inmates in the period following…

A benefit-cost analysis was conducted to compare services for 11 individuals with severe mental retardation and challenging behaviors who had been moved from an institution to a community setting. Overall, the community-based program costs represented slight public savings over costs in the state institution. Less quantifiable benefits were also…

Examined whether counselor-client similarity had influence on client's perception of treatment environment. Findings from 96 institutionalized female delinquents indicated the counselor-client similarity on personality dimension measuring sociability, character, responsibility, and intrapersonal values was significantly related to client's…

A national sample of 370 older persons with mental retardation in 235 facilities (foster care, small group homes, large private facilities, and state-operated facilities) was surveyed. Information is presented on resident characteristics, day program participation, services received, and differences in programs and services by facility type. The…

This survey of nine institutional and community settings serving persons with severe handicaps found (1) in groups managed by one or two staff, staff interactions, and client adaptive functioning improved with decreased group size; and (2) improvement in staff performance and client behavior from addition of staff to a client group was marginal or…

This study evaluated 2,815 adults with developmental disabilities in 328 Illinois intermediate care and skilled nursing facilities. Only 10 percent were determined to be appropriately placed in medical settings; 27 percent were enrolled in day training programs; and many individuals recommended for alternative residential settings had medical and…

This study of 26 deinstitutionalized and 31 institutionalized developmentally disabled New South Wales adults found that relocated subjects demonstrated a significant increase in adaptive functioning after 1 year of community living. No corresponding change was found for institutionalized subjects. Daily living skills improved the most, followed…

This paper describes institutional reforms implemented at Kfar Tikvah, an Israeli community for 126 moderately mentally retarded individuals. The process of changing to the organizational structure used in the kibbutz system is examined through descriptions of reforms in everyday life, social life, and work and economic independence. (JDD)

This comment on EC 231 901 notes that institution-based and community-based residential programs for mentally retarded persons have not been proven to be programmatically equivalent; promoting large institutions as safer than smaller facilities ignores the deplorable history of abuse within institutional services; and institutions cannot assure…

As part of an institutional closure program, 95 Australian individuals with mental retardation were relocated to community-based group homes. Assessments indicated improvements in adaptive functioning but not significant change in maladaptive behavior. There were also improvements in life circumstances and increased opportunities for choice-making…

Comparison of risk-adjusted odds of mortality of people with mental retardation living either in institutions or in the community in California from 1980 through 1992 estimated that mortality was 72% higher in the community than in institutions. Problems with health care delivery in the community were suggested as a reason for this difference.…

The number of female prisoners continues to grow in the United States, yet most examinations of how to increase reintegration and reduce recidivation focus on the needs of the predominantly male prisoner population. As a result, prison education programs and post-release environments often leave women unprepared and facing special risks. This…

The theory that borderline personality disorder (BPD) is associated with experiential avoidance, and that experiential avoidance mediates the association between BPD and deliberate, nonsuicidal self-harm was examined. Female inmate participants (N = 105) were given structured diagnostic assessments of BPD, as well as several measures of…