A Hospital Riot: Its Determinants and Implications for Treatment

Several factors were responsible for a riot on an inpatient treatment unit for delinquent adolescents: individual dynamics of patients and staff, group problems of patients and staff, and issues involving the entire patient-staff group. The unit is viewed as an open system comprising the individual dynamics of staff and patients as well as their interrelationships. Achieving and maintaining internal homeostasis are essential to that organism. The authors discuss the implications of their findings for hospital treatment.