This study dealt with differences in the responses of young adults within the Methodist church to two differing approaches (strategic leniency and customary methods) to leadership training. It was hypothesized that young adults approached through strategic leniency (the permission and encouragement of freedom of thought in the setting of small-group dynamics) will show greater increases in positive emotional and behavioral responses to the organization involved, be more selective in their patterns of response, and show greater change in belief, than those approached in the usual manner. A test group and a control group of 60 persons each were used, with the test group participating in small-group sessions for ten weeks. Changes in the two groups were measured primarily by questionnaires administered before and after the ten-week period. Findings supported the original hypotheses and lent indirect support to an additional hypothesis predicting change in the sponsoring organization as a by-product of other changes. (author/ly)