ABSTRACT
Frank was a model eighth grader at a special educational program where I consulted. He did his homework, never talked in class, and offered to help his teachers with copying materials and carrying supplies. His 9-year history of abuse and neglect by his birth mother, before his adoption to a loving middle-class couple, did not seem to affect his school behavior. His behavior at home, however, was a different story. He destroyed the hallway banister by scraping the polished mahogany surface with a pair of scissors; he cut holes in the Persian carpet; he broke treasured fi gurines displayed in the living room. When his parents returned from work and found the destruction in the house, Frank stated he could not remember anything about how it happened. They grounded him from television and phone use and docked his allowance, but the behaviors continued, along with his denial of any memory for his actions.
