THE PROGRAM FOR INTENSIVE MATCHED PROBATION AND AFTER-CARE TREATMENT (IMPACT) WAS DESIGNED TO EVALUATE THE EFFECT OF PROVIDING INTENSIVE PRACTICAL INTERVENTION IN THE WORK, FAMILY, AND LEISURE ACTIVITIES OF 'HIGH-RISK' PROBATIONERS. RESEARCH METHODS WERE USED THAT AVOIDED THE PROBLEMS POSED IN EARLIER RESEARCH. PROBATION RESEARCH DURING THE 1960S HAD BEEN CONFOUNDED BY THE INABILITY TO PRODUCE VALID PREDICTION TECHNIQUES WHICH COULD BE USED TO MATCH GROUPS OF OFFENDERS WITH DIFFERENT TREATMENTS, IN TERMS OF LIKELIHOOD OF RECONVICTION. PROBATIONERS IN THE REPORTED PROGRAM WERE ALL OVER AGE 17, WERE RANDOMLY LOCATED, AND TYPICALLY UNEMPLOYED. EXPERIMENTAL OFFICERS PROVIDED INTENSIVE TREATMENT, AND WERE AIDED BY REDUCING THEIR CASELOADS TO 20 PERSONS. CONTROL OFFICERS MAINTAINED CASELOADS OF OVER 40 PERSONS. ALTHOUGH THERE WERE SOME SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE EXPERIMENTAL AND CONTROL GROUPS, THERE WAS NO SOLID EVIDENCE OF BENEFICIAL AFFECTS OF THE EXPERIMENTAL TREATMENT. PROSPECTS FOR A DRAMATIC BREAKTHROUGH IN PENAL TREATMENT APPEAR REMOTE; MORE LIKELY, KNOWLEDGE WILL BE ACHIEVED THROUGH A SERIES OF GRADUAL IMPROVEMENTS. THE TEAM ASSIGNMENT OF SPECIALIST OFFICERS, USED IN THE IMPACT PROGRAM, IS ONE SUCH IMPROVEMENT. TABULAR DATA AND REFERENCES ARE PROVIDED.