The growth of for-profit hospitals in the southern United States was researched. Two regression models were developed to analyze the spatial distribution and growth of for-profit hospitals as a function of the locational characteristics of a hospital's service area from 1970 to 1980. For the first model, the dependent variable was the market share of for-profit hospital beds in 1980. In the second model, the dependent variable was the percent rate of change in for-profit market share from 1970 to 1980. Based on this research, the for-profit hospital of the 1970's appears to express a locational preference for areas which had limited hospital competition and were becoming increasingly suburban. A detailed review of the literature on for-profit hospitals and the method of analysis is presented. / Master of Arts