The purpose of this review was to examine the literature on parent training for parents of children with autism. Families with a child diagnosed with autism often face a discrepancy between their need for services and the availability of services either because they live in geographically distant areas or because they are on a long wait list for…

The document provides summaries of 53 programs from around the country demonstrating innovative approaches to identifying needs and developing and delivering services and materials to families. Chapters are organized according to broad themes which underlie their programs' design. Chapter 1 (10 programs) examines programs which explore informal…

In spite of the growing awareness and development of respite services, many families in need of them have little or no access. This is especially true for families whose children have emotional handicaps. A rationale for respite services supports parents' entitlement to respite care, its importance to all family members, and its help in improving…

Describes a continuum of services to families in their homes to prevent the necessity of child placement. Presents four categories of services--general case management, the comprehensive social worker, the in-house team, and the intraagency team--to aid families who demonstrate psychological difficulty and resource deficits. (Author/JAC)

Home based family centered (HBFC) service programs have been developed as alternatives to out-of-home placement. These programs have reported relatively high service success rates at costs signficantly lower than foster home and institutional care while, at the same time, avoiding the social and psychological risks of out-of-home placement.…

This report presents an evaluation of the Intensive Services Project in Lincoln and McCook, Nebraska, which was designed to demonstrate that caseworkers with smaller child protective caseloads could offer more effective home-based services. The background of the project is described focusing on staffing and service setting. Service principles and…

The site visit report describes the Family Support Services program run by the Calvert County (Maryland) Association for Retarded Citizens. The program's goal is to prevent any person 21 years of age or younger from being institutionalized. It provides respite care services, specialized family support, and integrated day care for approximately 50…

Family based services attempt to maintain and strengthen the client family and prevent family dissolution and the placement of a child or several children in substitute care. This study compared programs that serve children and their families in their home. Variances in program costs were attributed to differences in number of casework hours per…

Noting the potential of family support as an effective agent for change, this essay explores family support as community-based services to promote the well-being of children and families designed to increase the strength and stability of families, to increase parents' confidence and competence in their parenting abilities, to afford children a…

This manual provides a state-of-the art review of child neglect in the United States, its nature, causes, and the implications of that knowledge for preventive and remedial intervention. After an introduction, the first chapter considers the definition of neglect including types of neglect, the withholding of medically indicated treatment from…

The conference on "Support for Family Caregivers" reported in this document was designed to identify, encourage the development of, and disseminate information about effective approaches for strengthening the capacity of families to care for their impaired relatives. The first of two presentations in the opening plenary session reviews the needs…

The prevention of child abuse is bound up in the joining together of social nurturance and social control, which flow directly from the concept of support systems. Families involved in maltreatment are likely to be cut off from prosocial support systems. In contrast to psychiatric approaches, more recent behavioristic methods concentrate on…

Twenty-eight preschoolers with behavioral difficulties (aggression, hyperactivity, impulsivity, and inattention) in a North Carolina Head Start program received an individualized intervention based on the family-centered system of care approach. Interventions included: (1) individual and classroom-based behavior management; (2) on site…

Describes the Decker Family Development Center (DFDC) in Barberton (Ohio), while relating the difference that the DFDC's services has made to one poor family. Recounts the DFDC's establishment, funding, and current services (adult education, counseling for parents and children, and several types of child care services). (JB)