Borduin, C. M., Mann, B. J., Cone, L. T., Henggeler, S. W., Fucci, B. R., Blaske, D. M., & Williams, R. A. (1995). Multisystemic treatment of serious juvenile offenders: Long-term prevention of criminality and violence. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 63(4), 569-578.
The theme or key idea for this article was the examination of the long-term effects of multisystemic therapy (MST) compared to individual therapy (IT) for prevention of criminal and violent behavior.
The problem studied was violence among youths, which is a national health care issue with extreme fiscal and social costs. Mental health professionals and policy makers have promoted many childhood programs to prevent violence in youths and the results of programs, such as the multisystemic treatment program, need to be determined for long-term effects.
Hypotheses for this study were not formally stated, however, findings were statistically analyzed to reveal significant findings which demonstrated MST was more effective than IT in preventing violent offending and criminal behavior.
Research questions for this study were not formally stated, however, use of the question of whether MST would be more effective than IT for prevention of violence and crime, was implied.
The predictions for this study were not formally stated, however, they were implied. Since earlier studies from the Missouri Delinquency Project and other similar studies have demonstrated MST efficacy, it was implied that MST might also demonstrate positive long-term effects.
The article provided an adequate bibliography to support the study, with an introduction to the problem, definitions of the variables, previous use of MST, and possible explanations for findings.
The sample for the study included 176 juvenile offenders who were at high risk for committing additional serious crimes. This sample was drawn from the Missouri Delinquency Project which included 200 families wi...