The working alliance has been defined as a collaborative agreement between therapist and client on the goals and tasks of therapy, together with a bond of mutual trust (Bordin, 1979). The link between a strong working alliance and positive therapy outcomes has received widespread empirical support (Horvath & Symonds, 1991; Horvath & Luborsky, 1993). In light of this robust finding, Duncan and Miller (2000) suggest that, to increase their effectiveness, therapists may attend to and work within "the client's theory of change." These findings and suggestions typically concern the adult client willingly attending therapy. This study investigated how they might apply to juvenile delinquents. The goal of the current study was to examine the relationship between working alliance and treatment outcomes with delinquent youth. In addition, it aimed to investigate an element of the working alliance suggested to be of particular importance to these youth, their perception that the treatment process "fits" their own theory of change. Given its impact on treatment of mandated clients, readiness for change was also examined for its relationship with working alliance and treatment outcomes. One hundred and fourteen incarcerated youth were asked to complete a series of surveys at baseline, 2-month, and 4-month follow-up. The relationship between the predictor variables (working alliance, readiness for change, treatment fit with change theory) and criterion variables (staff-rated treatment progress, rule violations, and predicted post-detention success) were examined with multiple regression. Results demonstrated that youths' baseline ratings of treatment fit with change theory predicted self-reported treatment progress 4 months later, even when controlling for readiness for change. Treatment fit with change theory was related to the working alliance in this sample, and was a better predictor of self-reported treatment gains than the working alliance. Results suggest that treatment fit with change theory may be a productive way to conceptualize the alliance construct in work with incarcerated youth. Qualitative data on theories of change was elicited from participants and content analyzed for themes. Contributions to the developing field of desistence theory and implications for clinical practice are discussed. / text

published_or_final_version / Sociology / Master / Master of Social Sciences

The prediction of adolescents' antisocial behavior was central to this investigation. Specifically, use of the Psychopathy Checklist, Revised (PCL) as a predictor of the treatment outcome of a residential unit for juvenile delinquents was evaluated. Toward this goal, three foci guided hypothesis generation and testing. Multiple hypotheses were tested to consider (a) the predictive validity of the PCL, (b) the match between the PCL and Moffitt's (1993b) taxonomy of antisocial behavior and (c) the utility of the PCL as a selection instrument for assignment of juvenile delinquents to behavioral residential unit treatment. Subjects consisted of 80 adolescent, racially-mixed males (28 unit residents, 52 high school students).Predictive validity was evidenced for criteria consisting of future incarceration and future violent and nonviolent criminal offenses committed over the year following PCL administration. Prediction of future incarceration produced results similar to those found with adult prisoners (80% of psychopaths and 21% of nonpsychopaths were incarcerated). Moreover, PCL scores accounted for 26% of the variability in violent offenses and 40% of the variability of nonviolent offenses committed by subjects during the follow-up year.The match between Moffitt's taxonomy of antisocial behavior and the PCL was evidenced by data gathered on those subjects who were known to have engaged in antisocial behavior (N=71). The constructs that Moffitt (1993b) argued would mediate antisocial behavior and are measured with PCL items (such as neuropsychological executive functioning) significantly improved the prediction of future antisocial behavior over that accounted for by Moffitt's taxonomy. In fact, PCL items accounted for more unique variability in future offenses committed than did Moffitt's taxonomy.Utility analyses indicated that the PCL could be used to improve the prevention of success-improbable delinquents from being assigned residential treatment. Dollar value utility analysis indicated that over $5800 per resident could be reallocated to other interventions by assigning success-improbable delinquents to other treatments. Doing so was projected to result in over $175,000 less to be spent on treating unsuccessful residents. It was also argued that utility analysis figures could be to argue for development of alternative programs for delinquents who would probably be unsuccessful in the residential unit program. Residents who presented with internalized psychiatric disorders were not identified using the proposed cutoff score. Therefore, it was recommended that a second test be used to detect delinquents in need of in-patient psychiatric care. / Department of Educational Psychology

Thesis (Psy.D.)--University of St. Thomas, Minn., 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 133-143).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Toronto, 2004. / Adviser: Michele Peterson-Badali.

Thesis (Ed. D.)--University of Toronto, 2005.

Thesis (M.S.W.)--Smith College School for Social Work, Northampton, Mass., 2007 / Thesis submitted in partial fulfillment for the degree of Master of Social Work. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 15-17, 39-42, 60-63).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Oregon, 2004. / Typescript. Includes vita and abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 172-186). Also available for download via the World Wide Web; free to University of Oregon users.

Thesis (M. Soc. Sc.)--University of Hong Kong, 1996. / Lacks bibliography and appendix.

Thesis (M.S.W.)--University of Hong Kong, 1997. / Includes bibliographical references (leaf 166-170).