Many jurisdictions require psychiatrists to assess patient "dangerousness" in the process of involuntary hospitalization. Considerable research indicates that psychiatric prediction of dangerous behavior is rather inaccurate, the principal error being one of overprediction. Inaccuracy may result, in part, from the psychiatrist's role in the health…

Presented is Michigan's plan for improving services to the developmentally disabled who are institutionalized or at risk for unnecessary institutionalization. Such planning principles as accountability and normalization are said to be the basis for recommendations at the state, regional, and local levels, as well as for state home and training…

Presented is a longitudinal followup study some 4-10 years later of 569 mentally handicapped adults discharged from the Pineland Hospital and Training Center. Described are the setting in which the research was done (the institution, the field, and the State of Maine), relevant literature, the methodology of the data collection and analysis, and…

The major thrust of 1965 Elementary Secondary Education Act Title I, or Project SPEEDY (Special Programs to Enhance the Education of Disadvantaged Youth), has been in the area of corrective reading and other programs designed to promote language development. While the emphasis of federal programs has been to concentrate funds on fewer recipients,…

This paper analyzes the moral reasoning and perceptions of inmates in an eastern youth reformatory. A series of prison dilemmas, reflecting conflicts experienced by inmates and guards, was administered to 34 inmates; in addition, each inmate was given the standard Kohlberg moral maturity interview. Responses were scored for moral judgment and…

An experimental two-year treatment project designed to help the acute schizophrenic emerge from psychosis a stronger, better integrated person is underway at Soteria House, a comfortable 16-room house in the San Francisco Bay area. The project will compare the effects of treatment in this special facility with those of "usual" treatment in a…

To ascertain the manner in which access to the least restrictive alternative is being offered to the institutionalized severely and profoundly retarded in Illinois, three mental health facilities were surveyed. (Author/SBH)

This paper reviews the literature of the effects of imprisonment on the family, the prisoner and society. The authors draw implications which are relevant to family counselors and correctional institutions. (Author)

The prevalence of maladaptive behavior was investigated for 6,870 retarded individuals residing in institutions, community facilities, or their own home, and the relationship between behavior problems and sex, age, level of retardation, and race was examined. (Author)

The article briefly reviews the history of deinstitutionalization and supports the development and use of a comprehensive evaluation process to evaluate the human and environmental factors that affect the potential for successful placement of handicapped persons in community-based residential facilities. (JW)

The study compared effects on the behavioral functioning of 12 severely retarded adults of either large hospitals or small community-based houses. Use of an observational measure of purposeful activity as well as of staff behavior indicated increased client functioning in the small homes, particularly in domestic activity and interaction with…

This essay, taken from the 2004 KIDS COUNT Data Book, focuses on the issues surrounding America's most at-risk young adults. For most American youth, the transition to adulthood inspires a mix of excitement and high anxiety. There is excitement about taking steps to realize emerging dreams, aspirations, and possibilities. Yet there is anxiety…

This brief describes two exceptional model programs for adjudicated youth with disabilities: Woodland Hills Residential Facility in Duluth, Minnesota and the Minnesota Correctional Facility-Walter McGinnis High School in Red Wing, Minnesota. The brief shares best practices from research about these programs as well as insight, commentary, and…