WHEN THE MASSACHUSETTS DEPARTMENT OF YOUTH SERVICES (DYS) MOVED FROM AN INSTITUTION-BASED TO A COMMUNITY-BASED SYSTEM OF CARE, THERE AROSE NEW NEEDS FOR THE TRAINING AND RETRAINING OF PERSONNEL. THE PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY IS TO ESTABLISH A SET OF COMPETENCIES THAT CAN SERVE AS A FOUNDATION FOR A CURRICULUM TO MEET THESE TRAINING NEEDS. TENTATIVE ELEMENTS OF SUPERIOR PERFORMANCE BY DYS CASEWORKERS WERE IDENTIFIED BY INTERVIEWING OUTSTANDING CASEWORKERS, THEIR SUPERVISORS, AND A SAMPLE OF CLIENTS. A TECHNIQUE CALLED JOB ELEMENT ANALYSIS WAS USED TO RATE THE TENTATIVE ELEMENTS AND TO DERIVE FROM THEM A 71-ITEM QUESTIONNAIRE, WHICH WAS THEN USED BY ALL DYS CASEWORKERS TO RATE THEIR OWN PERFORMANCE AND BY SUPERVISORS TO RATE THE CASEWORKERS' PERFORMANCE. ANALYSIS OF 21 PAIRED RESPONSES (THOSE FOR WHICH RATINGS WERE OBTAINED FROM BOTH THE SUPERVISOR AND THE CASEWORKER) REVEALS 48 ELEMENTS SIGNIFICANTLY RELATED TO SUPERIOR CASEWORKER PERFORMANCE FROM THE SUPERVISORS' POINT OF VIEW. ONLY SEVEN ELEMENTS WERE SIGNIFICANTLY RELATED TO PERFORMANCE FROM THE CASEWORKERS' POINT OF VIEW. OF THE KNOWLEDGE-RELATED ELEMENTS RATED, ONLY 25 PERCENT WERE SIGNIFICANTLY ASSOCIATED WITH SUPERIOR PERFORMANCE (IN THE SUPERVISORS' RESPONSES), COMPARED TO 72 PERCENT OF THE ABILITY-RELATED ELEMENTS, 82 PERCENT OF THE ATTITUDE-RELATED ELEMENTS, AND 100 PERCENT OF THE SKILL-RELATED ELEMENTS. SUGGESTIONS FOR USING THE STUDY FINDINGS IN TRAINING CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT AND FOR EXTENDING THE CONCEPT OF COMPETENCY-BASED EDUCATION TO OTHER AREAS OF THE JUVENILE JUSTICE SYSTEM ARE OFFERED. A LITERATURE REVIEW, SUPPORTING DATA, STUDY INSTRUMENTS, AND A BIBLIOGRAPHY ARE PROVIDED. (LKM)