A sociopsychological approach is applied to social systems in examining the community mental health center movement. The interrelated concepts of task(s), social structure, culture, and social process help explicate the overwhelming emphasis on direct clinical service at the cost of indirect service. The historical evolution of the task-mandate and the professional and organizational structures of the CMHCs to their legislative origins is traced. Nonrational aspects of the social process during the 1960's contributed to an illusion of radical social change, despite the actual ongoing predominance of the clinical approach. Considering possible future directions of the community mental health center, the authors describe the advantages of a sociopsychological approach in providing a conceptual base for the integration of direct and indirect services. (Author)