Residential Group Care for Children Considered Emotionally Disturbed, 1966-1981

Trends in the organized provision of residential group care for children considered emotionally disturbed are identified in data collected by two national surveys carried out 15 years apart, in 1966 and in 1981. Major findings include a marked increase in the use of this form of care and a shift toward the use of smaller facilities for briefer periods of time. Competing alternative explanations for these and for other changes over time, observed in the data, are considered and implications for the future are discussed.