The purpose of this study was to investigate changes of the mandible of a growing rat when they are subjected to a retractive force and those after removal of the retractive force. The experimental animals were Sprague-Dawley male rats of four weeks of age. A mandible was retracted with 50 grams of force on each side in the posterior and superior direction for 8 hours per day. The animals were sacrificed after 1 week, 2-week and 4-week force application, and after 4-week force application-4-week force removal period. The changes of rat mandibular growth following retractive force on the growing rat mandible were observed histologically and biometrically. The findings were as follows; 1. Histologically, the thickness of the condylar cartilage was slightly reduced in the anterosuperior region with the retractive force. However, in the group of 4-week force application-4-week force removal, there was no significant difference in the thickness of the condylar cartilage. 2. There were no significant histological changes in the articular disk and glenoid fossa through the experimental period. 3. The length and anterior height of the mandible subjected to the retractive force were significantly smaller and greater than those of the control group. 4. There were no significant differences in the mandibular length between 4-week force application-4-week force removal and the control group. 5. It was concluded that a mandibular retractive force produced inhibitory effects in the growth of the mandible, but that these effects were not sustained during mandibular growth in this experimental model.