This paper is a description of one parent teaching group and what we and the parents did. The group was run by a psychologist and two social workers.

In Gwynedd a service for mentally handicapped people is developing. For most of the pre-school children and some of the older ones this includes a Portage type home visiting where usually a psychologist and a specialist community nurse or sometimes a social worker visit and help the parents to set goals and teach new behaviour to their handicapped relatives. Often, too, they are trying to help parents to cope with difficult behaviour.

Two reviews have recently appeared which are relevant to the continuing debate on the effectiveness of the ‘cognitive therapies’ (Ledwidge 1978; Di Giuseppe and Miller 1977). Their conclusions differ in emphasis, Ledwidge's position being exemplified by the title of his article, “Cognitive Behaviour Modification: A Step in the wrong direction?”, while Di Giuseppe and Miller conclude “the results (of Rational Emotive Therapy) are positive and hopeful … (but) far from conclusive” (p.91). It will be argued that the authors show some selectivity in the data they consider relevant to this topic, and that their conclusions are, in part, related to such selectivity.

Two previous articles report the successful treatment of chronic blushing (Salter, 1952, Case 10; Gibbs, 1965). Both cases employed techniques which were designed to increase the patient's self-assertiveness. As an adjunct to his therapy, Salter instructed his patient in the use of paradoxical intention to diminish blushing behaviour. This technique derives from Dunlap's (1932) beta hypothesis on learning which states that “the occurence of a response lessens the probability that on the recurrence of the same stimulus pattern, the same response will recur” (page 78). The present case describes the treatment of blushing with paradoxical intention alone.