Time and Crisis

This was an exploratory-descriptive survey of planned short-term crisis-oriented programs in 44 child psychiatric clinics and 54 family service agencies. The general study questions concerned the common and special characteristics of these programs, the extent to which formulations about the crisis approach and the structuring of the time dimension were utilized, and the feasibility of developing a scoring-instrument to profile certain important program features. Specific study questions dealt with theoretical formulations, practice processes, and administrative procedures. Planned short-term treatment (PSTT) was defined to mean that certain cases were designated during the intake period, or shortly thereafter, to be seen for (a) a more or less limited number of in-person interviews and/or (b) a more or less limited period of time. The "crisis approach" included attention to the stress-crisis configuration (the precipitating event, the perception of and response to the event, and the resolution of the ensuing problems) as well as emphasis on the prompt availability and accessibility of treatment. Major findings were: The proportion of clinics with PSTT services was much greater tha