Past efforts to deal treat delinquents have focused on changing individual behavior or on removing delinquents from environments that have conditioned their antisocial behaviors. More recently, attention has focused on the family as the natural social organization for the individual and as the locus of malfunction. The family systems approach perceives the behaviors of the family members as patterned responses to the family's organization. The open systems theorist also views the family as capable of creativity, spontaneity, and adaptation. A thorough assessment can reveal family themes and behavior patterns that reveal the meaning of the delinquent's behavior within the family context, even in families characterized by criminality, neglect, and a lack of resources. Caseworkers can then develop individualized plans that seek to interrupt the cycle of family behaviors that contribute to the delinquency. These plans can of ten produce more satisfactory results than the typical remedies used in many courts. The caseworker should (1) examine the history of delinquent behavior, precipitating crises, family character, family ecology, family competencies and resources, and the quality of affective expression and (2) develop a genogram as an assessment tool. Case examples, figures, and 17 references.