Abstract
This study assessed the effectiveness of a community-based intervention programme aimed at reintegrating youths back into school and improving problem behaviours and family functioning. Sixty-six youths (35 male, age range: 11 16 years) referred primarily for truancy, received an individualised intervention (lasting 6-13 months) which, for 31 youths, included mentoring. Pre- and post-intervention assessments included frequency of truancy, the Youth Self Report (YSR) and the Family Environment Scales (FES) (n=59). Results indicated that (a) the proportion of youths truanting persistently decreased from 82% to 37%, (b) males (particularly non-persistent truants) showed improvement on the YSR delinquency subscale; females improved on YSR delinquency, depression and aggression subscales, and (c) youths' FES conflict scores improved (particularly those who were assigned mentors). Drug use was related to improvements across all three domains, but in different ways (e.g., drug non-use was related to improvements in truancy while drug use was related to delinquency improvements). It is concluded that the intervention was partially successful. Its success may have been due to the multimodal and tailored nature of the program.