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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2012 Mar 28.
Published in final edited form as: Child Youth Serv Rev. 2011 Feb;33(2):308–321. doi: 10.1016/j.childyouth.2010.09.014

Table 2.

Overview of Group Care Treatment Models

Model and Citations to Descriptive Articles Target Population Essential Model Components and Duration Education and Training Resources Child Welfare Relevance
Positive Peer Culture

Vorrath & Brendtro (1985)

Laursen (2005)

Wasmund & Tate (1996)

Brendtro & Shahbazian (2004)
  • Population: troubled and troubling youth

  • Age: 12–17

  • Race: no specification

  • Maltreatment type: all types

  • Settings: residential care, outpatient clinic, school

Essential Components:
  • Building group responsibility

  • The group meeting

  • Service learning

  • Teamwork primacy

    Format:

  • Designed for group format

  • Recommended group size: 8–12

  • Duration: 90 minute structured group meetings, 5 times per week over a 6–9 months period

  • Designed with a child component, but not with a parent component

Manual: yes

Training: yes
  • Number of days/hours: varies

  • Both classroom training and program immersion

  • The Academy of Positive Peer Culture provides training annually at the Black Hills Seminars in Rapid City, SD.

  • On-site consultation $1,500 per day plus expenses; Black Hills Seminars – currently $450 per person

    Contact:

  • The Academy for Positive Peer Culture c/o Reclaiming Youth P. O. Box 57 Lennox, SD 57039

  • Starr Commonwealth, c/o T.F. Tate 13725 Starr Commonwealth Rd Albion, MI 49224

  • UMFS; c/o E.K. Laursen 3900 West Broad Street Richmond, VA 23230

Relevance to CW Population:
Medium

Relevance to CW Outcomes
  • Measures relevant to safety: No

  • Measures relevant to permanency: No

  • Measures relevant to child and family well-being: Yes

Teaching Family Model

Blase, Fixsen, Freeborn, & Jaeger (1989).
  • Populations: at-risk youth, juvenile delinquents, youth in foster care, developmental disability, severe emotional disturbance,

Critical Delivery Systems:
  • Staff selection & training

  • Competency-based management (consultation/supervision)

  • Quality assurance (evaluation)

  • Facilitative administration

Manual: yes; available on the web;

Training: yes;
  • Number of days/hours: Pre-service about 40 hours. Ongoing consultation with individual certification typically occurring after one year of practice.

Relevance to CW Population:
Medium

Relevance to CW Outcomes:
  • Measures relevant to safety: No

Kirigin (1996)

Wolf, Kirigin, Fixsen, Blase & Braukmann (1995)
  • families at risk of having children removed

  • Age: 0–17

  • Race: not specified

  • Maltreatment type: not specified

  • Settings: residential care, hospital, school, birth family home, foster home, outpatient clinic, community agency

Essential Elements:
  • Teaching systems

  • Self-determination

  • Client advocacy

  • Relationships

  • Family-sensitive approach

  • Diversity

  • Professionalism

    Format:

  • Duration: 9 months in residential care settings

  • Can be conducted in group format

  • Designed with a parent and child components

  • How is training obtained: Provided by regional sponsoring agency.

  • Cost of training: Part of the employment components. No cost to practitioner employed by the agency.

  • Certification needed

    Contact:

  • Peggy McElgunn, Esq. peggymcelgunn@comcast.net

  • Measures relevant to permanency: No

  • Measures relevant to child and family well-being: Yes

Sanctuary Model

Rivard (2004)

Bloom (2005)

Farragher & Yanosy (2005)
  • Population: not a client- specific intervention, but a full-system approach aimed at helping children in care who have experienced trauma

  • Age: Adolescents

  • Race: not specified

  • Maltreatment type: not specified

  • Settings: day treatment, residential care, hospital

Essential Elements:
  • Culture of Nonviolence, Culture of Emotional Intelligence, Culture of Inquiry & Social Learning, Culture of Shared Governance, Culture of Open Communication, Culture of Social Responsibility, Culture of Growth and Change

    Format:

  • Not specifically designed to be conducted in a group

  • Not specifically designed with child or parent component

Manual: No

Training:
  • Number of days: 5 days followed by a 30-month consultation period

  • Information session, organizational readiness assessment, training at Andrus Center

    Contact:

    B. Farragher & S. Bloom at Andrus Center for Learning & Innovation www.andruschildren.org

Relevance to CW Population:
Medium

Relevance to CW Outcomes:
  • Measures relevant to safety: No

  • Measures relevant to permanency: No

  • Measures relevant to child and family well-being: Yes

Stop-Gap Model

McCurdy & McIntyre (2004)
  • Population: children and youth (ages 6–17) with disruptive behaviors such as non-compliance, conduct problems, and aggression

  • Race: not specified

  • Maltreatment type: not specified

  • Setting: residential care, hospital

Essential Elements:
Three Levels of Intervention:
  • Environment-based (token economy, academic intervention, social skills training, problem- solving and anger management)

  • Discharge-related (intensive case management, parent management training, community integration)

  • Intensive intervention (Function- based assessment, Function- based behavior support planning)

    Format:

  • Was designed for group setting and to be conducted in a group

  • Short-term model; anticipated duration is 90 days to 1 year

  • Designed with a parent and child component

Manual
There is no manual

Training:
  • Number of days: 2 days

  • On-site

    Contact:

    B. McCurdy, Devereux Center for Effective Schools

Relevance to CW Population:
Medium

Relevance to CW Outcomes:
  • Measures relevant to safety: No

  • Measures relevant to permanency: No

  • Measures relevant to child and family well-being: Yes

Re-ED Model

Hobbs (1966)

Walker & Fecser (2002)

Valore, Cantrell, & Cantrell (2006).
  • Population: troubled and troubling youths

  • Race: not specified

  • Maltreatment type: not specified

  • Also developed for children with developmental delays

  • Setting: residential care, birth family home, foster home, outpatient clinic, community agency, adoptive home, school

Core Elements:
  • Wellness and strength orientation

  • Ecologically-focused involvement

  • Competence-based interventions

  • Relationships seen as critical

  • Natural agents in teaching and counseling roles valued and developed

  • Ongoing questioning and data- based decision-making

    Format:

  • Designed for group format and for group setting

  • Multiple group meetings daily, each held for specific purposes (planning, problem solving, evaluation, strengths focused meetings, etc.).

  • Group meetings vary from fifteen minutes to more than an hour.

  • Generally, short-term - 4–6 months of residential enrollment.

Manual: yes

Training:
  • 2-day introductory training modules, but may be divided into 6 segments for programs needing different schedules.

  • Training days/hours vary, depending on the needs of the agency, as indicated by their performance on the assessment factors from the Re-ED fidelity scale, and on their own objectives for Re-ED knowledge and implementation in what service type(s).

  • On-site and regionally

    Contact:

    Mark Freado, M.A., Executive Director American Re-Education Association

Relevance to CW Population:
Not rated

Relevance to CW Outcomes:
  • Measures relevant to safety: No

  • Measures relevant to permanency: No

  • Measures relevant to child and family well-being: Yes