The term behavioral disorders includes several patterns of behavioral manifestations. The issue with the term “behavior problems” lies in the fact that it labels all children who do not fit into accepted norms. It is very important that the assessment be mainly adapted to the child’s needs and abilities rather than to the requirements of society. For example, some children are very flamboyant or all over the place because traits of their temperament that make them look restless, but are in fact completely healthy. That is the reason why ADHD is not suitable to diagnose under the age of 7.
Behavioral problems are very often a cry for help, which – unfortunately – remains misunderstood by others. We can only expect a certain behavior from children, if they have been previously brought up to behave in that way. For instance, if a child has never had to share with others, they will have no idea the ability is required of them in kindergarten.. Adaptive abilities, the rate of mastering a particular type of behavior, one’s endurance and tolerance threshold – all are individual characteristics – and depend on a number of factors.
We distinguish three factors determining the degree of development of adaptive skills:
1. biological,
2. mental,
3. social.
In your teaching practice, you’ve surely witnessed a child having a temper tantrum or other difficult behaviors requiring the teacher’s attention. If it is a toddler who falls into that kind of fit of rage, it can be considered a natural childhood behavior, corresponding with age. It is behavior the child is not yet able to regulate or even adequately consider. Nevertheless from a certain age and in a certain context, such bouts of inappropriate behavior may present a problem. Such behaviors are often linked to the child’s inability to self-regulate. This is the
ability to control immediate impulses and behavior in accordance with the current situation. This can include the ability to avoid excessive emotional responses to disturbing stimuli, to calm down and change our expectations in order to manage frustration without explosive behavior.
This so called self-regulation is in reality a set of skills that enables children, as they mature, to direct their behavior towards a goal, despite unpredictable situations or emotions. Problematic self-regulation manifests itself in different ways depending on the specific child. Some kids are likely to exhibit strong reactions without significant previous build-up. They seem to be unable to inhibit immediate behavior. With other children distress builds up over a longer period of time, eventually culminating in an outburst of inappropriate behavior. This might look like as if the child were going “down” the path of not being able to regulate themselves and may confuse us.
Childhood is a period where all behavioral and emotional manifestations are dependent on development, including those of a pathological nature. It is crucial to know that each developmental period is characterized by certain rules and features which refer to the biological, mental and social growth at a given time.
As we outlined, inappropriate conditions during early childhood can lead to various disorders and abnormalities. Each developmental period is characterized by a range of ways to respond to inappropriate conditions in the child‘s close environment. This environment is full of other people who relate to the child and so the emergence of behavioral disorders is associated above all with the child’s relationships with others.
In order to define a behavioral problem, it is first necessary to determine what the norm is. This norm enables us to make quantitative and qualitative comparisons. Norms usually differ in particular situations, meaning that the appropriate reaction to one situation may be inappropriate for another. For example, a child is perfectly fine to splash water in the bathtub but it might not be appropriate to do so in the classroom. So, we expect children to follow certain situational norms. Mastering these norms depends on the age of the child. This means that the same behavior can be defined as normal or abnormal during different developmental periods.
According to the International Classification of Diseases, behavioral disorders are characterized by a “repetitive and stable pattern of dissocial, aggressive or defiant behavior.” The presence of isolated extreme cases of problematic behavior is not a reason to make the diagnosis of a behavioral disorder. This diagnosis is supposed to include a persistent and stable pattern of behavior. For example, a child reacting strongly and yelling at parents when they make a specific comment is not a reason to say that the child has a behavioral problem. Rather we must first acknowledge the emotional reaction and where it came from.
The International Classification of Diseases lists behavioral abnormalities under F90 to F98 – “Behavioural and emotional disorders with onset usually occurring in childhood and adolescence”.
They are divided into two large groups in childhood: behavioral and emotional. The main reason is that mental disorders in childhood are not well differentiated. It is believed that the family has a large influence on a child’s abnormal behavior. Some authors define the family as the “social womb” where the emotional climate is more important than the physical conditions. According to them the most important aspect is the “mother-child” relationship. The child builds up their trust towards the primary caregiver. This primary relationship of trust is the basis for the development of trust towards others. So, we can make use of this fact by having knowledge of, or even making enquiries into the relationship between the mother and the child (or the primary caregiver and the child).
Analyses show that those parents who are sensitive to the needs of their children, understand them and give them love, manage to instill in their children positive patterns of behavior. On the other hand parents who are inconsistent in their responses to a child (in the same situations they react to the child’s behavior in different ways) or make use of strict, long-term punishments, are inculcating aggressive tendencies and deviant behavior in their child.
The child’s behavior can influence the parents’ behavior just as much as the behavior of the parents affects the child. Deteriorated family functioning creates conditions for the development of the so-called family-adaptation insufficiency. Family misfortunes and conflicts form inadequate concepts of interactions between people. Parents’ relationships are the first behavioral model which the child perceives. (A clear example might be, that out of all the basic emotional behavioral expressions, disgust is the only one we learn from parents or authority. Or, a more common example might be a child who uses “adult” words, intonation or posture that they heard from someone.) These relationships make them understand different emotional nuances.
The emergence of behavioral disorders is the result of a combination of different biological and social factors. Having only a biological predisposition does not automatically lead to the development of behavioral disorders. The behavioral problem in children is a symptom of a malfunctioning biological or social system. One exception are the developmental behavioral disorders, known under the acronyms ADHD/ADD, as described below. These are disorders of brain functioning which are either congenital or acquired early. External factors such as inappropriate educational methods cannot by themselves cause these disorders. Nevertheless they may worsen the symptoms of the disorder and contribute to the development of further problematic behavior.