THE 32 SUBJECTS WERE INMATES OF FREMANTLE PRISON, FREMANTLE WORK RELEASE HOSTEL, AND WEST PERTH WORK RELEASE HOSTEL, ALL OPERATED BY THE WESTERN AUSTRALIA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS. THE SUCCESS GROUP AVERAGED 2.5 YEARS OF HIGH SCHOOL, COMPARE TO 1.4 YEARS OF HIGH SCHOOL FOR THE FAILURE GROUP. MEAN AGE FOR BOTH GROUPS WAS 25.9 YEARS. MOST WERE LABORERS. TESTS ADMINISTERED INCLUDED THE FOLLOWING: A MEASURING INSTRUMENT FOR MOTOR CONFLICT RESOLUTION; A DELAY OF GRATIFICATION MEASURE USING MONETARY AND NONMONETARY CHOICES; AND TESTS OF THE ABILITY TO PERCEIVE FUTURE EVENTS, TO ESTIMATE TIME, AND TO EXERCISE MOTOR CONTROL. ROTTERS INTERNAL-EXTERNAL CONTROL SCALE WAS USED TO MEASURE LOCUS OF CONTROL. EACH TEST IS DESCRIBED. IT WAS FOUND THAT THE ONLY SIGNIFICANT PREDICTORS WERE THE CONFLICT RESOLUTION TESTS AND THE ABILITY TO DELAY GRATIFICATION. THOSE WHO SHOWED EITHER 'BLOCKING' (NO ACTION) OR COMPROMISE RESPONSES HAD GREATER SUCCESS RATES THAN THOSE WHO ARBITRARILY SOLVED THE PROBLEM OR WHOSE RESPONSE SHOWED EQUIVOCATION. ALSO, THOSE WHO WERE ABLE TO DELAY GRATIFICATION HAD GREATER SUCCESS RATES. THE LOCUS OF CONTROL TEST SHOWED A NONSIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN SCORES OPPOSITE TO THE DIRECTION PREDICTED; I.E., SUCCESSFUL WORK RELEASEES BELIEVED EXTERNAL EVENTS TO BE THE MORE IMPORTANT INFLUENCE ON ONE'S LIFE. EXAMINATION OF RECORDS ALSO SHOWED THAT WORK-RELEASE FAILURES WERE MORE LIKELY TO BE PRIOR RECIDIVISTS, TO HAVE HAD A PRIOR ESCAPE ATTEMPT, AND TO BE FUTURE RECIDIVISTS. TABLES PRESENT STUDY DATA. A BIBLIOGRAPHY IS APPENDED. (GLR)