THE SUBJECTS CHOSEN FOR THE STUDY WERE PUPILS OF LODZ PRIMARY TECHNICAL SCHOOLS IN POLAND AND ORDINARY POLISH PRIMARY SCHOOLS WITH VOCATIONAL TRAINING INCLUDED. SUBJECTS WERE AGE 15 YEARS AND 7 MONTHS UP TO 18 YEARS AND 6 MONTHS. FIVE GROUPS OF YOUTHS WERE COMPARED: 54 GIRLS AND 51 BOYS FROM 2 EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS, 57 BOYS FROM A REFORMATORY, AND 54 GIRLS AND 51 BOYS LIVING AT 2 BOARDING SCHOOLS. IN SPITE OF SUBJECTS' SIMILAR AGE AND SOCIAL BACKGROUND, THERE WERE SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES IN INTENSITY, CAUSES, AND TYPES OF SOCIAL MALADAPTATION. BOYS AND GIRLS LIVING AT BOARDING SCHOOLS SHOWED VIRTUALLY NO SIGNS OF MALADAPTATION. YOUTHS LIVING IN EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND A REFORMATORY SHOWED SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES IN INTENSITY, CAUSES, AND TYPES OF SOCIAL INADAPTATION FROM BEHAVIORAL PROBLEMS AT SCHOOL, TO PROSTITUTION, CRIMES AGAINST PROPERTY (29 BOYS) AND HOMICIDE (2 BOYS). THE RESULTS OF PSYCHOLOGICAL EXAMINATIONS WERE COMPARED WITH THE HELP OF RAVEN'S TEST AND THE MINNESOTA MULTIPHASIC PERSONALITY INVENTORY (MMPI). THE RESULTS OF RAVEN'S TEST SHOWED THAT 44 BOYS FROM THE EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION HAD THE HIGHEST MENTAL LEVEL. THE ARITHMETICAL MEAN OF THE BOYS WAS 37.39 AND DIFFERED CONSIDERABLY FROM THE ARITHMETICAL MEANS OF THE 57 JUVENILE DELINQUENTS STAYING AT A REFORMATORY (33.70) AND OF THE 36 BOYS WITHOUT SYMPTOMS OF SOCIAL DEMORALIZATION ATTENDING PRIMARY TECHNICAL SCHOOLS AND LIVING AT BOARDING SCHOOLS (29.61). THE MEAN OF 49 SOCIALLY MALADAPTED GIRLS STAYING AT THE EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION (35.78) APPEARED TO BE CONSIDERABLY HIGHER THAN THAT OF 36 PUPILS LIVING AT THE BOARDING SCHOOLS WHO DID NOT SHOW ANY SYMPTOMS OF DEMORALIZATION (28.56). MMPI SCORES WERE CONSIDERABLY LOWER (I.E. MORE FAVORABLE) FOR GIRLS WHO DID NOT SHOW ANY SYMPTOMS OF MALADAPTATION THAN WITH MALADAPTED GIRLS AND FOR SCHOOL STUDENTS. THE RESULTS OF BOTH RAVEN'S TEST AND MMPI SHOWED THAT THE GOAL OF REHABILITATION WAS NOT MET IN EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND REFORMATORY. THESE INSTITUTIONS DID NOT PRESENT THE YOUTHS WITH OPPORTUNITIES FOR MAXIMUM DEVELOPMENT. THE VOCATIONAL PROGRAMS (CARPENTRY, SEWING ETC.) WERE NOT ATTRACTIVE ENOUGH TO HOLD INTEREST OF MANY OF THE YOUTHS. HIGH SCHOOL EDUCATION OUGHT TO BE AVAILABLE, AND THE PERSONNEL SHOULD BE TRAINED IN PSYCHOLOGY. RESULTS OF MMPI SHOWED NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES BETWEEN YOUTHS IN EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND THE REFORMATORY, WHICH MEANT THAT YOUTHS WERE PUT INTO THE EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS WHEN IT WAS TOO LATE.