An Experiment in Reaching Asocial Adolescents Through Group Therapy

Abstract

Many disturbed, potentially delinquent boys and girls by the time they are adolescent have become unreachable by all the ordinary means available in even a highly urbanized community with highly developed resources. This experiment was devised and developed in an effort to reach these adoles cents in groups. To establish any measure of therapy required intensive work within the groups and later additionally in their community relationships. The attitude of the therapist that proved successful in setting up the right atmosphere with the members of the groups had to begin with the first contact. Boys' groups show clearer stages of evolution than the girls'. Certain trends in their behavior reveal the boys' maturation, for example, their behavior in the group concerning refresh ments. The girls show dissimilar reactions but even more in tense and complicated problems. For both boys and girls, once a certain amount of closeness and trust is established, show their need for and accept help outside the group and in their community contacts. Not only the therapist but a staff trained in special fields were needed to change these contacts to work able relationships. The degree of success is not easy to evalu ate for the future, but to date there is a genuine basis for considering the experiment successful. The adolescents in the main seek out social relationships and have a greatly improved appreciation for education, work, and community authorities.