NCJ Number
127102
Journal
Adolescence Volume: 25 Issue: 100 Dated: (Winter 1990) Pages: 891-904
Date Published
1990
Length
14 pages
Annotation
A new program for treating oppositional defiant adolescents, REST (Real Economy System for Teens), was compared with more traditional outpatient therapy based on cognitive restructuring. Over a 3-year period, 50 adolescents defined as oppositional defiant were treated, half in a REST program and half at a private psychological clinic.
Abstract
Pre-therapy and post-therapy assessments were used to compare the effectiveness of the two approaches. In the traditional approach, therapy continued until parents reported an improvement in their child's behavior or until parents and therapists agreed nothing more could be done for the patient. The REST program used rules to enforce five target behaviors including room care, personal hygiene, completion of chores, abusiveness, and safety violations. The adolescents had to earn money for things other than food and shelter through the REST allowance program which required compliance with all rules for the five target behaviors. The findings of the study showed significantly greater improvement for REST participants in all target behaviors than for adolescents in the traditional therapy group. The follow up data show that the improvements were maintained even after three years. Unlike other programs, REST presented a comprehensive system that could be applied to any oppositional defiant adolescent case. 2 tables, 5 figures, and 27 references