• In a preliminary survey, 484 alumni of the Massachusetts Mental Health Residency Training Program from 1912 to 1967 were surveyed. Approximately 80% were found to have devoted half or more of their professional time to the nonprivate practice of psychiatry for at least one year. These data suggest that a training program with strong academic traditions might produce a preponderance of publicly oriented psychiatrists.

Since previous surveys have indicated a greater proportion of psychiatric time spent in private practice, we suggest that future surveys of psychiatric manpower need to consider the orientation of residency training programs in order to accurately assess the need for future psychiatric manpower.