The re-invention of residential treatment: an agenda for research and practice.

I am not particularly optimistic about achieving even a few of these mod-est changes absent a more focused and thoughtful discussion on substitute care asa whole. My strong sense is that we must bring the worlds of policy, research, and practice in residential and foster care into much closer proximity so that we can assess what the challenges and strengths are in each domain and chart a course of action for renewal. To do this, we need fresh conceptual thinking on milieu treatment and empirical research. International perspectives on the issue of the proper place of residential care and treatment in an overall service continuum would be helpful in broadening and stimulating limited and typically parochial discussions in the United States. It is hoped that this article and the considerable clinical, administrative, and research expertise reflected by the other contributors in this issue will serve as a catalyst for addressing some of the issues concerning residential treatment. It is an exercise long overdue.