Abstract:
Noncompliance with treatment requirements severely impacts the delivery of mental
health services. This study investigated the relationships between family variables and
compliance versus noncompliance with completing treatment requirements. The sample
consisted of 83 court ordered families, 54 male and 42 female juvenile offenders and
their 82 mothers and 35 fathers. The archival database consisted ofthe families that
attended the Family Solutions program from September 2000 to May 2002. Seventy
families completed the program while 13 did not comply with treatment requirements.
Treatment outcome was found to be associated with increased family satisfaction.
Therefore, treatment was considered valuable which rendered meaning to the attrition
rates of the program. Families were assessed on demographics such as gender, race, and
history of family criminality, family involvement by number of family dinners eaten
together each week, family satisfaction as measured by the Family APGAR, and primary
caregiver depression as measured by the Beck Depression Inventory. Families who never
ate dinner together or ate dinner together four or more times were more likely to drop out
of treatment than families who ate dinner together 1 to 3 times per week. No other
measures were found to be significant.
