ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the essentials of the Teaching-Family Model system as applied in a small family-style residential group home setting. The treatment model began in 1967 in Lawrence, Kansas, with the establishment of Achievement Place for Boys. Since then, the program has been refined, replicated, and disseminated nationally. The TeachingFamily Model now includes an integrated system of staff selection and training, specific behavioral treatment strategies, and routine quality control procedures. It is this system of service delivery as applied to problem adolescents that has provided the foundation for our research efforts. Based on nearly 30 years of research experience with the model’s application to children and adolescents with severe behavior problems, the model can best be described as one that emphasizes changing conduct rather than curing disorder.
