THIS IS YOUR MEETING - A QUALITATIVE STUDY OF PERSON-CENTERED PLANNING

Participant observation and in-depth interviews were conducted to dete rmine processes involved in person-centered planning. Initial planning meetings of 6 individuals were studied in connection with a project t o assist young adults in transition from school to adult life. The org anization and structure, facilitation process, participation of famili es, professionals, friends, and the focal individual were described. A lthough the major goal of the project was to assure that this was the individual's own meeting, implementation of this principle was constra ined in several ways, including facilitators' tendency to behave accor ding to prior roles and training. Six months following initiation, sev eral positive outcomes could be attributed to the planning process. Fu rther, many unplanned positive outcomes appeared to result from person -centered planning.