Teens Who Hurt ─ Clinical Interventions to Break the Cycle of Adolescent Violence

Offering a fresh perspective on treatment, this book presents an overarching framework and many specific strategies for working with violent youth and their families. The authors shed light on the complex interplay of individual, family, community, and societal forces that lead some adolescents to hurt others or themselves. Effective ways to address each of these factors in clinical and school settings are discussed and illustrated with evocative case material. The book provides essential guidance on connecting with aggressive teens and their parents and managing difficult situations that are likely to arise. The strengths-based interventions presented are applicable to a broad range of high-risk behaviors, from bullying and assault to substance abuse, self-mutilation, and suicidality.

Kenneth V. Hardy, PhD, is a professor of family therapy at Syracuse University and is Director of the Eikenberg Institute for Relationships in New York. He is the former Director of the Center for Children, Families, and Trauma at the Ackerman Institute for the Family in New York. Dr. Hardy has provided training and consultation for working with troubled children and youth throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia. His work has been featured on The Oprah Winfrey Show, 20/20, Dateline NBC, PBS, and the Discovery Health Channel. Dr. Hardy maintains a private practice in New York.

Tracey A. Laszloffy, PhD, is a relationship therapist who specializes in working with troubled adolescents and their families. Currently she maintains a private practice in Connecticut, and prior to this, she directed the Marriage and Family Therapy master's program at Seton Hill University in Greensburg, Pennsylvania. Dr. Laszloffy has published extensively, and she routinely provides training and consultation to organizations that work with at-risk youth.