The Five-Two Program: An Integrated Approach to Treating Severely Disturbed Children

An integrated treatment plan combining therapeutic activities conducted by a child's family, a special school, and the hospital is used for some severely disturbed children at a New York children's center. After short-term hospitalization, the child is gradually returned to live with his family for several days a week; the parents are taught to conduct an operant conditioning program to modify his most troublesome behaviors. The child also may attend a special school in the community, where the behavior modification program is continued.