The empirical evaluation of the effects of different group treatment strategies against a controlled treatment strategy on behavior exhibited by antisocial children, behaviors of the therapist, and two self-rating scales that measure antisocial behavior.

Evaluated two group treatment strategies against a control treatment strategy on the behaviors exhibited by antisocial children, behaviors of their therapists, and two self-rating scales. The first year 139 antisocial children were stratified according to age and then randomly placed into 14 groups. For the second year, 100 children were placed into 11 groups composed of antisocial children. Behavioral measurements of the children's and therapists' behaviors were secured at each weekly 2-hour meeting. Children were pre- and posttested on the various inventories postulated to measure antisocial behavior. In addition, significant adults, such as group therapists, filled out pre- and posttest inventories to measure antisocial behavior. For both years very few significant differences occurred between the treatment groups and the control groups on the dependent variables studies. The findings are discussed in terms of their relevance for behavior therapy.