This is another excellent publication from FOCUS at the Royal College of Psychiatrists Research Unit. Unfortunately, it suffers the fate of many book-style publications, in that it is out of date even before it is published, and certainly by the time it is reviewed. The most recent reference in this volume is from the year 2000. Nevertheless, it provides a very readable summary of the research on different styles of parent training. The volume starts with an overview of the nature of conduct disorders, then looks at the nature of the research, and summarises relevant papers. Summaries of the different treatments give a useful idea of the alternatives to the Webster—Stratton programme. Included in the volume are the results of a survey of child and adolescent mental health services about practices and attitudes in relation to parent-training programmes.

This would be a worthwhile volume for any child and adolescent mental health service needing a summary of the evidence base for parent-training programmes.