Effects of a Skills Training Intervention With Juvenile Delinquents

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Abstract
A test was conducted of a cognitive-behavioral skills training program with 141 incarcerated juvenile delinquents. Subjects were randomly assigned to an experimental skills training or normal institutional treatment control group after blocking on county of origin, race, and sex to ensure group equivalence. A behavioral role-play inventory, the Adolescent Problem Situation Inventory, was used to assess subjects' skill levels before and immediately following the intervention. Data were examined for evidence of skill differences at posttest and generalization of skills to untrained role-play situations. Experimental subjects had significantly higher posttest scores than did control subjects in situations involving avoidance of drug use, self-control, and social interaction and interpersonal problem solving. Generalization of skills to untrained role-play situations was found among experimental subjects. No evidence of interactive effects of gender, race, offense type, or pretreatment drug use on posttest skill level was found