UNIT 8: CHILDREN WITH BEHAVIOUR AND EMOTIONAL PROBLEMS

Focusing Questions
1. Why is there a wide range of estimates on the prevalence of youngsters with behaviour
problems in the middle-age population?
2. What patterns are common along the families of children with behaviour problems?
3. How is socialized aggression different from other forms of deviant behaviour?
4. What are several potential causes of behaviour problem?
5. How are drug therapy, behaviour modification, and psychodynamic strategy used in
educational adaptations for youngsters with behaviour problems?
6. What techniques do we use to teach children to manage their own behaviour?
7. Expalain a Model of Behavior Problem

INTRODUCTION
Exceptional is the term that traditionally has been used to refer to people with disabilities as
well as to those who are gifted. Exceptional learners got many characteristics and one of
them was behavior problem. This part has been concerned on the behavior problem
among the disability children. Although it is difficult to identify the types and causes of
problems, most children and youths with emotional and behavior disorders, whether
aggressive or withdrawn are quite easy to spot. Relatively, few student with disorder
have high intelligence, in fact most have below average IQs.
Many other children with emotional or behavior disorder are isolated from others not
because they withdraw from friendly advances but because the strike out with
hostility and aggression. It is no wonder that these children and youth seems to be
involved in a continuous battle with everyone. The reaction of most other children and
adults is to withdraw to avoid battles, but rejected children then do not learn to
behave acceptably.
Teachers and well-behaved peers naturally tend to withdraw from them or avoid
them, which reduces their opportunities to learn both academic and social skills. Most
teacher and parents can learnt to be highly effective in helping youngsters with
emotional or behavioral disorders, sometimes without extensive training or professional
certification.

Many of these children and youths

as well. The best thinking today is
behavior or just in the environment
the child and the social environment

do require services of highly trained professional

that the problem isnt always just in the child
but the problem is the social interaction between
are inappropriate.

In this assignment, we complied additional information about emotional and behavioral

disorder such as definition, causes related to both disorder, classification and characteristics
also the developmental profiles. We also answer the question that we need to answer in
order to completed this assignment.

DEFINITION OF EMOTIONAL AND BEHAVIORAL DISORDER

Before we explained details about emotional and behavioral disorder, it is important to know
first about the definition. Defining emotional and behavioral disorder has always been
problematic. That is why defining behavior and emotional problem in children is not easy to
determine. Most definition assume that a child with a behavior disorder or serious emotional
disturbances, reveals consistent age-inappropriate leading to social conflict, personal
unhappiness and school failure.
A behavior disorder implies that the child is causing trouble for someone else. Sometimes
serious emotional disturbances can be merely their personal unhappiness. The person who
perceives the childs behaviors inappropriate play a key role in decision. Moreover, some
kinds of this behavior such as physical attacks, constant weeping or unhappiness and
extreme hyperactivity are unacceptable in any setting.
Professional use different terms, such as emotionally disturbed, behavior disorder and
seriously emotionally disturbed, that refer to students with behavior disorder. Student in this
category are identified by behavior problems that interfere with productive interpersonal
relations.
CURRENT DEFINITION
There is general agreement that refers to behavioral disorder . First, behavior that goes
to an extreme which is not slightly different from usual. Secondly, a problem that is chronic
mean one does not quickly dissappear and lastly, a behavior that is unacceptable
because of social or cultural expectations.
a) The Federal Definition
This term means as condition exhibiting one or more of the following characteristics over
long period of time and to marked extend, which adversely affects educational performance.
This term also may includes childrens who are schizophrenic. The term does not includes
children who are socially maladjusted unless it is determined that they are emotionally
disturbed. The term includes

Inability to learn that cannot be explained by intellectual, sensory and health factors.
Inability to build or maintain satisfactory relationship with peers and teachers.
Inappropriate types of behavior or feeling onder normal circumstances.
A general pervasive mood or unhappiness or depression.
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 A tendency to developphysical symptoms or fears associated with personal or school

problems.
This term includes childrens who are schizophrenic. The term does not includes children who
are socially maladjusted unless it is determined that they are emotionally disturbed.
b) National Mental Health and Special Education Coalitation
The term emotional or behavioral disorder means a disability characterized by behavioral or
emotional responses in school that is different from appropriate age, cultural and ethnic
norms that affects educational performances. Educational performances includes academic,
social, vocational and personal skills. Examples of disability:

More than a temporary, expected response to stressful events in the environment.

Is consistently exhibited in two different setting at least one of which is school
related.

Is unresponsive to direct intervention in general education or the childs condition is

such that general education interventions would be insufficient.
Besides that, emotional and behavioral disorder can co-exist with other disabilities. This
category may include youths with schizophrenic disorder, affective disorder, anxiety disorder
or other substained disorder conduct or adjustment when they adversely affect educational
performances.
What are the factors that related with children with emotional and behavioral disorder?
CAUSES RELATED TO EMOTIONAL AND BEHAVIORAL PROBLEMS
Several theories and conceptual models have been proposed to explain about abnormal behavior.
Parents and professionals also have been looking for the reason why some children show emotional
and behavioral problems. They believe that behavior problems maybe influenced by four major
factors:
1.
2.
3.
4.

Biological disorders and diseases

Pathological family relationships
Undesirable experiences at school
Negative cultural influences

There is no conclusive empirical evidence that any of these factors is directly responsible for the
disorder. Some factors might give a child a predisposition to exhibit problem behavior and other
might precipitate or trigger it. There is some factors such as genetics, influence behavior over a long
time and family factors that might have more immediate effect to the children who already
predisposed to problem behavior.
One hypothesis is that future behavior is determined at birth. But now, we can say that the final
determination of behavior is a mix of genetics and environment. It is exrtremely unusual to find a
single cause that has led to such behavior. Usually, there are several factors together contribute to
the development of a problem.

Based on genetic evidence, although some youngsters have predisposition toward behaviors such as
hyperactivity, attention problems or impulsiveness but those behavior may call for some special
educational or social environments to ensure that such predispositions do not flower into real
behavioral problems (Rutter,1997). We cannot just simply decide that only one factor cause behavior
problems among youngsters.
1. BIOLOGICAL FACTORS
Researches are discovering biological causes for some types of disorder with some children. First
of all, behaviors and emotions problems may be influenced by genetic, neurological or biochemical
factors or combinations of these. Researcher found evidence of the important role that heredity
plays in shaping behavior and personality, specifically the sex-linked differences in many
behavioral conditions. Certainly, there is a relationship between body and behavior and it would
therefore seem reasonable to look for a biological causal factor of some kind of emotional or
behavior disorder.
As we know, prenatal exposure to alcohol can contribute to many types of disability and it is including
emotional and behavior disorder. But only rarely is it possible to demonstrate a relationship between a
specific biological factors and those disorder. As we mentioned before, there is no real evidence that
biological factors are the only causes for behavioral problems. However, for severe and profound
disorders, there is evidence to suggest that biological contribute to their conditions. In addition,
medications are helpful in addressing the problems of many students with emotional and behavioral
disorders if they receive state-of-the-art psychopharmacology.
All children are born with a biologically determined bahavioral style and temperament. But the
temperament may be changed by looking from the way they are reared. However, some people also
believed that children with difficult temperament are predisposed to develop emotional and behavioral
disorders. Besides temperament, there are some other factors which includes under biological factors
such as disease, malnutrition, and brain trauma. Sustance abuse, for example also contribute to
emotional and behavioral disorder even it is not possible that these factors are the direct causes of
problems behavior.
There are four major points which are important to remember about biological causes:
1. The fact that disorders have bological causes does not mean that they are not emotional or
behavioral disorders because thay can have a physical cause such as biological mulfunction.
2. The causes of emotional and behavioral disorders are seldom exclusively biological or
psychological. Once a biological disorder occurs, it nearly always creates psychosocial
problems that contribute to emotional and behavioral disorder.
3. Biological or medical treatment of the disorder is seldom sufficient to resolve the problem.
Medication may be great benefit but it is seldom the only intervention that is needed
4. Medical or biological approaches are sometimes of little or no benefit and the primary
interventions are psychological or behavioral, eventhough the disorder is known to have
primarily a biological cause. Medication do not work well and generally no effective medication
are known.
2. FAMILY FACTORS

Some researches found that parents are among the factors that causes childrens behavioral
problems. Very good parents sometimes have children with very serious emotional and
behavioral disorder but in contrast, some neglectful or abusive parents might have children
with not significant emotional or behavioral disorders. The relationship between parenting and
both disorders is not simple but some parenting practices are better than others. Parents who
are generally lax in disciplining the children but inconsistent in dealing with misbehavior tend to
have aggression and problematic childrens. Besides that, broken and disorganized homes
which parents themselves have arrest record or are violent may also cause deliquency and a
lack of social competence.
Theory of socialization suggesting that, the role of parents is minimal in the development of
their childrens personality or social behavior. According on this theory, family is the primary
factor in socialization which including parents that have a significant causal influence on some
disorders. In 1989, The Federation of Family for Childrens Mental Health was organized to
help parents who have children with emotional and behavioral disorder. This federation provide
support, resources and also organizing to assist each other in finding additional resources.
3. SCHOOL FACTORS
School is where children spend the largest portion of their time outside the home. Therefore, it
makes sense to carefully observe what takes place in schools in an effort to identify other
events that may cause behavior problems. Because most children with emotional and
behavioral disorders are not identified until they are in the school, it seem reasonable to
question whether the school actually contributes to the incidence of behavioral disorders.
Children who exhibit disorders when they enter school may become better or worse according
to how they are managed in the classroom.
Teacher themselves have tremendous influence in their interactions with students. Teachers
sometimes can cause aggravate behavioral disorder and emotional disorder. This may occur if
teacher who is unskilled in managing classroom or insensitive to students individual
differences creates an environment where aggression, frustration or withrawal is common
responses to the environment and teacher. The school can contribute to the development of
behavioral problems in several ways such as teachers and parents hold too high or too low
expectations for the childs achievement and they might communicate to the child who
dissappoints them and then the childs will feel undesireble and inadequate.
In addition, discipline and school environment also influence toward behavior problems.
Generally, children with behavior problems always get fully attention from teacher but child who
behave properly is ignored. Finally, teachers and peers might be the models of misconduct
because the child misbehave by imitating.

4. CULTURAL FACTORS
Cultural factors is the other factor that causes emotional and behavioral disorder which
includes the influences of children themselves, families and school. Values and behavior
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standards are communicated to children through different kind of cultural conditions, demands,
prohibitions and models. Some of cultural influences are the level of violence in media
especially through television and motion pictures, the availability of recreational drugs and the
level of drug abuse, the threat of nuclear accident or war and so on. Besides that, peers are
the another important sources of cultural influences.
In United States, for instance, the changing of cultural conditions predispose children to the
development of emotional and behavioral disorder. For example, the increasing number of
children living in poverty, those being born to teenage mothers and mothers who engage in
substance abuse. Mereover, dramatic increases in the ethnic diversityof most communities
might contribute to the mistaken identification of. Abuse and other forms of extreme trauma
are known as to contribute significantly to emotional and behavioral disorders of many
children in our society today.
What are the similar patterns among the family that have children with emotional and
behavioral disorder?
When a child with a disability becomes a member of the family, whether through birth,
adoption or later onset of the disability, the ecology of the entire family usually must make
adjustment. Each parent or family members responds to a childs disability in his or her own
way.
Recommended practice suggests that professional should apply family systems theory by
individualize their work with each child with a disability. This family system theory was to
focus specially on families of young children with disabilities. Their family system conceptual
framework includes the following four keys elements, which are all interrelated.
1. Family characteristic are the attributes of a family, such as their cultural background,
financial well-being, size, age, geographic location, abilities and disabilities.
2. Family interactions refer to the daily relationships between and among the family
members.
3. Family functions are the needs and interest of the family members met by the family,
including social, emotional, educational or physical needs such as health care or child
care.
4. Family life cycle refers to all the changes that affect families and influences family
resources, interaction and functions.
Additionally, each members health status both physical and mental, individual coping style,
and the severity of the disability are included as personal characteristic. A final component
are includes special challenges that can face a family such as poverty, substances abuse,
and parents who themselves have disabilities. Collectively, these variables contributes to
each familys unique identity and influence interactional patterns among the members while
also determining how the family response to their childs disability. It is easy to understand
how large family living below the poverty line in the rural location might differ in adaption from
an affluent suburban family with an only child who has a disability.
Based on the Human Rights and Equal OpportunityComission 1998, there is an increasing
incidence of single parent families, blended families with children behavior problem as the
result of remarriages and a basic shift in the values held by the community on what is
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appropriate behavior for young people. These factors have ramifications for the family role of
socialization.
Three main types of family characteristics are considered risk factors which is similar in
developing behavior problem in children. That is maladaptive family interaction and
communication patterns, a high level of family stressors and socioeconomic disadvantages.
The same factors also addressed in the House of Representatives Standing Committee on
Education, Employment and Training (1996).
While there appears to be little direct evidence to confirm that anyone family factors causes
behavior disorder or emotional disturbance, family characteristic such as single parent
homes, marital discord, low socioeconomic status and disturbed child-parent relationships
may increase the likelihood of disturbed and delinquent behaviors in. Submission from
across Australia to the House of Representative Standing Committee on Education,
Employment and Training (1996) identified family conflict, poverty, single-parent, blended
families, neglect of physical and psychological well-being, lack of supportive care and
concern, lack communication, sexual abuse, stress and damaged relationship as recurrent
themes in childrens attitudes. Children from dysfunctional family environments develop low
self-esteem and fail to develop appropriate strategies to deal with eager and other problems.
Where several factors occur together, the probability that a child will develop a behavior
disorder is not additive, but multiplicative.
Studied conducted in educational settings catering for children with severe behavioral
problem reflect the same difficulties faced by children from dysfunctional families. Importantly
the family dysfunction may be either a result of the behavior of the child with behavior
problem, or may be the cause of the behavior problems. In addition Candy and Baker
highlighted the common desperation, and guilt of parent who seek specialist behavioral
placement for their children.
Ramsey and Walker (1998) compared two groups of boys drawn, as pair from the
same fourth grade classrooms. The thirty-nine boys in one group exhibited antisocial
behaviors the forty-one boys in the other group did not. Data that come from structured
family interviews confirmed that the antisocial children lived in an unstructured, negatives
environment where discipline was harsh and inconsistent. Although these factors may not
have caused the antisocial behavior, they certainly did not contribute in a positive way to the
childs social development.
These factors once again indicate the importance of involving the entire family when
possible. A generation ago, feelings were strong that parents were in large part responsible
for their childs behavior problem. Today, many believe that the childs a typical behavior may
cause parents to react in ways that are inappropriate and make the condition worse in a
downward spiral of unfortunate sequential events.

CLASSIFICATION OF EMOTIONAL AND BEHAVIORAL DISORDER

Researchers have identified children with emotional and behavior disorder are characterized
by behavior that falls significantly outside the norm of their peer group on two broadband
dimensions commonly referred to as externalizing and internalizing. Both patterns of
behavior have adverse effects on childs academic achievement and social relationship.
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(a)

Externalizing

The most common pattern of behavior by children with emotional and behavior disorder
consists of antisocial or externalizing behavior. In the classroom, children with externalizing
behavior frequently striking out against others such as children will acting-out behavior. This
acting-out behavior included aggressive or disruptive behavior that is observable as behavior
directed toward others. Children maybe tend to fight with others, annoying friends, stealing,
lying and so on. Besides that, children with externalizing behavior being exposed to damage
the property around them. They like to complaint and ignore the teacher and sometimes also
temper tantrum.
All children sometimes cry, hit others and refuse to comply with request of parents and
teachers. The antisocial behavior of children often occurs with little or no provocation.
Aggression takes many forms verbal abuse toward adults and other children, destructiveness
and vandalism also physical attacks on others. Children seem to be in continuos conflict with
those around them and it result difficulty for them to establish friendship.
(b)

Internalizing

Internalizing behavior involves mental and emotional conflict which means the children will
acting-in behavior. For examples, the feeling of anxiety, fearfulness, withdrawal and other
indications of an individuals mood or external state. Besides that, children with internalizing
behavior also might exhibit with several problems like short attention span and poor
concentration. Although children who consistently act immature and withdrawn do not
represent the threat to others, that anti-social children do, their behavior creates a serious
impediment to their development.
They usually do not have the necessary social skills to make friends and often retreat into
daydreams and fantasies. Aome are fearful of things without reason, frequently complain of
being sick or hurt and go into deep bouts of depression. Obviously, such behavior aptterns
limit childs chances to take part an school activities in which normal children participate.
Because children who had internalizing behavior may less disturbing to classroom teachers
than anti-social are, withdrawn children are in danger of not being identified.
The outlook are fairly good for the child with mild and moderate degrees. That is important for
teachers to take responsible to monitor their development of social skills and let them learn
gradually and systematically.

CHARACTERISTICS OF EMOTIONAL AND BEHAVIORAL DISORDER

a) Intelligence and Achievement
Describing the characteristics of children with emotional and behavioral disorders in an
extraordinary challenge because disorders of emotions and behaviors are extremely varied.
Research clearly shows that the average of student with an emotional and behavioral
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disorder has an IQ in the dull normal range which is around 90 and that relatively few score
above the bright normal range. Compare to the normal distribution of intelligence, more
children with this problems fall into range of slow learners and mild intellectual disability.
There are pitfalls in assessing the intellectual characteristics of a group of children by
examining the distribution of their IQ s. Intelligence tests are not perfect instruments for
measuring what we mean by intelligent. It can be argued that emotional and behavioral
difficulties might prevent children from scoring as high as they are capable of scoring. Lower
than normal Iqs for these students indicate lower ability to tend with impairment in other
areas of functioning such as academic achievement and social skills. IQ is a good predictor
of how far a student will progress academically and socially even in cases of severe disorder.
Most of students with this problems are underachievers at school which is measured by
standardized test. They not usually achieve at the level expected for his or her mental age.
Many of students with severe disorders lack basic reading and arithmetics skills and few of
them seem to be competence in reading or math but often unable to apply their skills in
everyday problems.
b) Social and Emotional Characteristics
Children with emotional or behavioral disorders are characterized primarily by behavior that
falls significantly beyond the norms of their cultural and age group. As mentioned before,
there are two major dimensions of this kind of disorder which known as externalizing and
internalizing. Both patterns of abnormal behavior have adverse effects on childrens
academic achievement and social relationships.
i.

Aggressive and Acting Out Behavior (Externalizing)

The most common behavior pattern of children with behavioral disorders consists of
antisocial or externalizing behaviors. In the classroom, children with externalizing behaviors
frequently do the following:

Get out of their seats

Yell, talk out, and curse

Disturb peers

Hit or fight

Ignore and complain the teacher

Are excluded from peer-controlled activities

Do not respond to teacher corrections

Do not complete assignments

Aggression have been analyzed from many viewpoints. The analyses that have the strongest
support in empirical research are those of social learning theorists such as Bandura and
behavioral psychologist such as Colvin, Patterson and others. Their studies take into account
the childs experience and motivation based on anticipated consequences of aggression.
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They view aggression as learned behavior and assume that is possible to identify the
conditions under which it will be learned.
Basically, children learn many aggressive behaviors by observing people around them such
as parents, siblings, playmates or from people portrayed on television and in movies.
Individuals who model aggression are more likely to be imitated if they are high in social
status and are observe to receive rewards and escape punishment for their aggression. If
children are place in unpleasent situations and they cannot escape from the unpleasentness,
they are more likely to be aggressive especially if this behavior encourages by others.
Aggression is encouraged by external rewards, vicarious rewards and self-reinforcement. If
children can justify aggression in their own mind, they are more likely to be aggressive.
Punishment can actually increase aggression.
Teaching aggresion childrens is not easy. The most helpful techniques include providing
examples or models of nonaggressive responses to aggression such as provoking
circumstances. Next, helping the child rehearse or role-play nonaggressive behavior and
also teachers or parents can providing reinforcement for nonaggressive behavior. Other than
that, we should prevent the child from obtaining positve consequences for their aggression
and punishing their bad behavior by using time-out or brief social isolation rather than
speaking or yelling.
ii.

Immature Withdrawn Behavior and Depression (Internalizing)

Some children with behavioral disorders are anything but aggressive. Their problem is the
opposite too little social interaction with others. They are said to have internalizing behavioral
disorders. Although children who consistently act immaturely and withdrawn do not present
the threat to others that antisocial children do, their behavior creates a serious impediment to
their development. These children seldom play with others their own age. They usually do
not have the social skills needed to make friends and have fun, and they often retreat into
daydreams and fantasies. Some are fearful of things without reason, frequently complain of
being sick or hurt, and go into deep bouts of depression. Obviously, such behavior limits a
childs chances to take part in and learn from the school and leisure activities in which normal
children participate.
Children who exhibit the internalizing behaviors characteristic of some types of anxiety and
mood disorders may be less disturbing to classroom teachers than are antisocial children.
Because of this, they are in danger of not being identified. Happily, the outlook is fairly good
for the child with mild or moderate degrees of withdrawn and immature behavior who is
fortunate enough to have competent teachers and other school professionals responsible for
his development. Carefully targeting the social and self-determination skills, the child should
learn and systematically arranging opportunities for and reinforcing those behaviors often
prove successful.
In addition to these general symptoms of a behavior disorder, there are other symptoms
characteristics of more specific behavior disorders such as ODD (Oppositional Defiant
Disorder), Obsessive or Compulsive Disorder, Bipolar disorder and ADHD (Attention Deficit
Hyperactive Disorder). Young people with ODD appear to have very short tempers. They are
very touchy. They seem to be very angry and resentful. They display vindictive or spiteful
behavior. Generally, there are difficult to be around.
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The obsessive or compulsive disorder is demonstrated by repeated and persistent thought or

impulses that are unwanted and cause severe discomfort in the person. For example, a child
may constantly imagine that there are monsters lurking everywhere. The behavior is
compulsive when it is repeated persistently without satisfaction like counting numbers,
washing hands all the time.
Bipolar Disorder (used to be referred to as manic depressive) is characterized by moodiness.
It involves mood swings form highs inflated self-esteem, excessive indulgence in
pleasurable activities that could lead to pain to lows (depression or irritability, lethargy).
ADHD, this is the classic inattentive cannot sit still behaviors. The attention span is very short
and the behavior is impulsive at times. The child also seems quite distracted and forgetful.
Those childs with ADHD displays significant signs of inattention, distractibility and
disorganization but does not show the typical signs such as delayed cognition of a child with
mental retardation.
Such pattern of behavior show up typically in the preschool age. One standard possible
treatment for ADHD is medication, primarily to slow the child down so that someone can
catch his or her attention long enough to teach needed information. Drugs such as Ritalin,
Dexedrine or recently added Cylert have been prescribed often with the desired result of
increasing the childs control of his or her own behavior.
Children with ADHD find it difficult to settle down to a particular task, particularly deskwork.
Such students have been called learning disabled or even emotionally or behaviorally
disturbed. Sometimes there is a case for classifying them under other health impaired. But
whatever the classification, some standard intervention techniques can help teachers
respond to such students.
Standard intervention techniques:

Providing s structured learning environment.

Repeating and simplifying instruction about in class and homework assignment.
Supplementing verbal instructions with visual instructions.
Using behavioral management techniques.
Using tape recorders.

Behavior disorders come from brain injury, child abuse, trauma and others. There have also
been indications that it could be a genetic disorder. The behavior therefore is an involuntary
response to these experiences and the child should not be blamed for his behavior. Since the
child has problems controlling his behavior it stands to reason that is performance in school
will be affected. A child with a behavior disorder will feel bad about himself and that low selfesteem will be further worsened by the adults around him who do not treat his condition with
understanding and willingness to help.
Too often the child is blamed for his unacceptable behavior and instead of being supported to
deal with it, he is castigated and alienated. There is therefore, a thin line between behavior
disorder, emotional disorder and learning disabilities or maybe one leads to another. So, that
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is the reason why parents should be aware about their childs that have all those behavior.
Early intervention is important ways that parents should be taken in order to help the
development of children with emotional and behavioral disorder.

DEVELOPMENTAL PROFILES

As we mentioned before, they are two major dimension of disordered behavior which is
known as externalizing and internalizing. Externalizing involves striking out againts other and
internalizing involves mental or emotional conflicts such depression and anxiety. From our
observation, we found that development profiles of children from both dimension of behavior
disorder are totally different. The development process is differ towards each other. From the
bar chart that we have studied, it shows the graph of the development profiles of two
youngsters. Both of them have behavior problems and experiencing academic difficulties.
However, this two children develop in different ways.
First of all, both of them have been assess interm of ages and grade equivalent because
they are not in the same ages. Secondly, they also been assess by looking for their physical
development which is height,weight and motor coordination. Thirdly, assessment in academic
perfomances which in included assessment and mental ability, language development,
reading, spealing, arithmetic reasoning and arithmetic computation. Fourthly, children also
being observed by looking their sensory development such as mobility, vision, and hearing.
In addition, interpersonal relationship and social maturity are also important part that have
been assess in order to evaluate the development with emotional and behavior disorder.
CASE STUDY: RESULT OF DEVELOPMENTAL PROFILES BETWEEN JIM AND MOLLY
A. Jim ( Externalizing behavior)
In Jim cases, his behavior problem related with the family factors which is he comes from
broken family. Jim comes from a father- absent home and his mother sometimes
disorganized also seems to have given up trying to control him. Eventhough, school personal
are actively seeking alternative placement for Jim such as send him to join the program
mental health services but the sistuation remains difficult. There are few part of assessment
on Jim behavior :
1. Age and Grade Equivalent
o 11 years old
2. Physical development
o Physical skills are advanced
o As he grows older he will become less manageable physically
3. Academic performances
o Use bad languages
o Academic performances down from two to five grades below his grade level
o Unwillingness to accept corection or help from teacher
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4. Interpersonal relations
o Tend to complicate the situation because he does not have interpesonal skills
5. Intrapersonal relation
o Sullen and angry most of the time
o Rarely smiles and temper tantrum
o Social context are limited to are few other youngsters who have similar
behavior with him.
o Cruelty to animals

B. Molly ( internalizing behavior)

Differ from Jim, Molly comes from family that aware about her problem. Mollys parent are
concern about her and have taken many different step to help her but so far their efforts not
satisfied yet. There are few part of assessment on Jim behavior :
1. Age and Grade Equivalent
o 9 years old
2. Physical development
o Quite slow and not suitable with the level of her ages.
3. Academic performances
o Having difficult times at school
o Low academic performances
4. Sensory development
o Average level
5. Interpersonal relations
o Seems to internalize herself
o Tears and depressed much of the time
o She would likely unnoticed at school
6. Intrapersonal relations
o Not able to make friends and socialized
o So quiet and being alone

CONCLUSION
Emotional disturbance is not a physical disease located solely within a child, but we
prefer to look at a disturb ecosystem, in which disturbance can be more profitably
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viewed as a failure to match. There is no sound scientific basis for belief in hidden
causes. The childs behavior and its social context are the problem. Causes may
involve a childs thoughts, feelings and perception.
Early intervention is often suggested but seldom practiced. This program was the
basic goal of intervention programs for any category of disability and the goal
present particular difficulties. It is possible to identify at an early age those children
who are at high risk for emotional or behavioral disorders.
They should be identified as early as possible and their parent and also the
teachers should learn how to teach them essential social skills and how to
manage their problem behavior using positive and nonviolent procedures. If they
been identified early and intervention is sufficiently comprehensive, intense and
sustained. Then theres a good chance that they can recover and exhibit
developmentally normal patterns of behavior.

ADDITIONAL NOTES:
DISCUSSION NOTE:

CHILDREN WITH BEHAVIOR PROBLEM

DEFINITION:

It is based on the criteria that children with behavior problems reveal

consistent age-inappropriate behavior resulting in social conflict, personal
unhappiness and school failures

It depends on the dimension of intensity and duration

o how often
o how strong and
o how appropriate to the situation

The persons who perceive the childrens behavior as inappropriate (the

attitude of the perceiver)
Behavioral disabilities are defined as a variety of excessive, chronic, deviant
behaviors ranging from impulsive and aggressive to depressive and
withdrawal acts which violate the perceivers expectation of appropriateness
and which the perceiver wishes to see stopped.

Generally experts in the field claimed that the definition should include 4 elements:

The disturber element

The problem behavior element
The setting element
The disturbed element

CLINICAL CLASSIFICATION (MEDICAL PSYCHIATRIC VIEWPOINT)

1. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM III)
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a.
b.
c.
d.
e.

Clinical syndromes
Personality disorders
Specific developmental disorders and conditions
Severity of psychosocial stressors
Highest level of adaptive functioning of the past years.

2. Classification System of Psychopathological Disorders in Childhood.

a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.

Healthy responses
Reactive disorders
Developmental deviations
Psychoneurotic disorders
Personality disorders
Psychotic disorders
Epanchin

3. Classification from an educational perspective.

The behavior is dtected mostly using check lists, rating scales and similar
measuring devices.
a.
b.
c.
d.

Conduct disorder
Anxiety withdrawal
Immaturity
Socialized aggression

Characteristics of these 4 patterns of deviant behavior

a. Conduct disorder
o Defies authority
o Hostile toward authority figure
o Cruel, malicious and assaultive
o Hyperactive, restless and hyperkinetic
b. Anxious-withdrawn child
o Shy, timid withdrawn, seclusive, sensitive and submissive
o Over dependent and easily depressed
c. Immaturity
o Inattentive, sluggish, lacking interest in school, lazy,
preoccupied, daydreaming, drowsy and reticent
d. Socialized aggression
o Behaviors just like conduct disorder but these children are
socialized within their peer group, gang or companions
o Stealing, truancy and gang behavior
DIAGNOSIS OF BEHAVIOR DISORDERS
a. Initial screening
b. Identification
c. Assignment to a diagnostic category
15

a. Screening
o Identified by teachers, parents, peers or self-report
o Behavioral rating scale:
the behavior problem checklist
the Devereux Child Behavior Rating Scale.
IDENTIFICATION
Disordered children are identified by comparing to an external criterion which entails
direct observation of behavior or target assessment. This is the identification of
a. Behaviors that are causing problems to the child or others in her social
environment.
b. Environmental variables that might be influencing the target behaviors.
c. Variables that might be used to change these behaviors.
Assignment to a diagnostic category / classification
a. Assigning a child to a classification of behavior problem and developing an
intervention plan.
b. Traditionally the child is referred to a clinic for formal diagnostic testing
c. End up with a number of labels
d. Common ones are hyperkinetic, obsessive-compulsive, minimal brain
dysfunction and adjustment reaction to childhood.
e. Assign them to special education program.
Behavior is the result of the interaction of multiple causes. Any specific behavior,
taking place at any one point, represents the end point of the interaction of genetic
-constitutional factors, the current physiological state of the individual, his current
environmental conditions and past learning which, in turn was a function of a similar
interaction.
Studies have identified factors that are associated, or correlated with behavioral
problems.These factors and conditions are not causes but rather etiological
correlates. It can be divided into 2 groups:
a. Biophysical correlates
o Genetic, neurological or biochemical conditions
o Infantile autism and hyperactivity
b. Environmental correlates
o Home factors hostile interaction in the families
o School factors failures in school
o Peer group children influence each others behavior.
EDUCATIONAL ADAPTATIONS FOR CHILDREN WITH BEHAVIOR PROBLEMS

1. Educational and Psychological Strategies

16

a. Psycho educational Strategy

Assessing the childs need
Developing an individual plan and educational prescription
Within the school setting
Teacher implements the program.
b. Psychodynamic Strategy
Help the children become aware of their own needs, desires and
fears
Psychiatric procedures as diagnosis, treatment, decision making
and evaluation (removal of a symptoms)
c. Behavior Modification Strategy
View all behavior (maladaptive and adaptive) as learned
Must be dealt with, specifying those behaviors that are to be
changed and provide differential reinforcement to strengthen the
desired behavior
d. Ecological Strategy
Due to improper interactions between child and environment (family,
siblings, teachers, children, cultural subgroups)
Modifying elements in the ecology including the child
Advocating more constructive interactions between child and
environment.
2. SKILLS
A variety of techniques and procedures to cope with behavior problems
children introduced into school. For example teach the child how to gain
control over impulsive behavior and to strengthen the childs use of
prosocial behavior:
a.
b.
c.
d.

Teaching self- control

Overcoming learned Helplessness
Making value decisions
Modifying behavior
Operant conditioning
Task analysis

3. Learning Environment
Learning environment modifications designed to improve the
interchanges of the child with the environment.
a. The Re-Ed Program
b. Open Education Program
c. Using Psycho educational Strategies
17

d. The helping Teacher

4. Drug Therapy i.e. using stimulants
DISCUSSION NOTE: MODEL OF BEHAVIOR PROBLEMS OF CHILDHOOD
The most persuasive model for behavior problems in childhood comes from Chess
and Hassibi (1978) who summarize the interactive viewpoint when they state that
disturbances and deviations of childrens development are seen as interdependent,
interactional phenomena with the child acting as a developing biopsychological
organism within a social environment.
Diagrammatically the model is shown below:

Emotional antecedents
(fear , stress)

Physical antecedents
(asthma , diabetes)

Physical Illness
(nausea)

Emotionally Illness
(fear , anxiety)

The social
environment
THE CHILD
(a developing
biopsychological
organism)
MALADJUSTMENT

Many attempts have also been made to classify the behavior problems of childhood.
Classification is important for three reasons:
1. It may be used in diagnosis and treatment
2. It allows comparison among different group
3. It provides a useful guide for research purposes.
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For the therapist, Chess and Hassibi (1978) have this to say about the classification
of childhood psychiatric disorders:
Ideally the diagnostic classification of childhood and adolescent psychiatric
disorder should indicate the nature of the individuals pathology, the severity,
the etiological agent or agents if known, and the prognosis, if known.

Rutter (1975) propose the following scheme for classification in accordance with
W.H.O guidelines:
(Note that two of the classifications use the word associated indicating that while
they may be causative, the link remains tenuous.)

1. Clinical Psychiatric Syndromes including emotional disorders, conduct

disorders, hyper kinesis, infantile autism etc.
2. Intellectual level Expression of intelligence is related to behavioral
disorders especially those relating to mental retardation.
3. Associated or etiological biological elements including sex differences,
temperament, physical illness and brain disorders.
4. Associated or etiological psychosocial elements with particular
references to unique family, school and society conditions.
5. Learning disorders A deceptively simple label. Includes problems ranging
from lack of maturation to reading retardation to neurodevelopmental lag.

1. CLINICAL PSYCHIATRIC SYNDROMES:

Caution:
a. not all problems are psychiatric disorders. Some may be transient
difficulties that differ in varying degrees from normal development. Here
the behavior is not a cause of concern it does not differ significantly
from other children and it does not persist.

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b. the antecedent behavior maladaptive consequences chain is the

inextricably linked with the success of failure of individuals to adapt to
the environment with their basic equipment.

There are 3 major groups of clinical psychiatric syndromes.

a. The Emotional Disorders
b. The Conduct Disorders
c. Other Disorders

a. The Emotional Disorders:

Although all aspects of a childs functioning are affected, there is no lasting
intellectual deterioration and the total personality remains intact.
Included in this category are:

Fears Phobias Anxiety

Depression
Other Emotional disorders:
o obsessive-compulsive behaviors
o Hysterical Conversion Reactions Hypochondrias (preoccupation with
bodily processes and fear of presumed disease)

b. The Conduct Disorders:

Those in which the chief characteristic is abnormal behavior which gives rise to social
disapproval. The behavior can be seen to fit a chronological hierarchy.
The conduct disorders include:

DELINQUENCY
The pattern is as follows:
Impulsive, unpredictable, temperament
Difficult babies
Generalized aggressive pattern appears
Lying
Fighting
Bullying
Defiance of Teachers
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PREDELINQUENT

Educational Difficulties
Stealing
Truancy
Arson / Vandalism
Problems with sex, drugs, alcohol.

DELINQUENT

Example of Patterns of Behavior of Drug Abuse

The pattern of the behavior chronologically is as follows:
Proliferating drug culture
Experimenting
Hooked

Crime
The problem is impossible to overcome in a society that urges its citizens to avoid
even minimal discomfort by drug usage. A headache is immediately relieved with an
asprin, anxiety by Valium drug are a part of our society.
c. Other Disorders:
These include
a. Hyper kinesis: over activity, restlessness & distractibility
b. Infantile Autism: inability of child to relate to others or form normal self
concept
c. Childhood Schizophrenia: disturbance is thought and behavior, emotional
distortion.
2. INTELLECTUAL LEVEL:

This refers to the behavior problems associated with mental retardation, which is
defined by the American Association on Mental Deficiency as Mental retardation
refers to significantly sub average general intellectual functioning existing
concurrently with deficits in adaptive behavior and manifested during the
developmental periods.
The following are the behavior components likely to be present with mental
retardation:
a. Perseveration with lack of change in responsiveness
21

b. Dependence on routine
c. Stimulus bound and therefore easily distractible
d. Fear
e. Lack of spontaneity
f. Diminished ability to maintain a chain of thought and therefore poor judgment
g. Repetitive physical activities disturbing to others for example rocking, head
banging, hyperactivity, temper tantrums
h. Also there may be some effects on neurological functioning for example hyper
tonicity, hypo tonicity, ataxia, altered reflexes, poor coordination, seizures.
While mental retardation obviously affects cognitive functioning, the retarded child is
increasingly vulnerable to personality disorders his emotional growth is far below
normal, socialization suffers, his tolerance for anxiety and frustration is low. Various
studies have shown a higher incidence of physical disorders among the mentally
retarded.

3. BIOLOGICAL ELEMENTS
a. Gender: Psychiatric disorders are more frequently diagnose in boys than in
girls. Possible reasons: Males greater vulnerability to stress than females?
Male temperament? Cultural differences?
b. Genetics : Genetic factors are very influential in the developmental of many
temperamental attributes, but the childs behavior is not predestined by
them. Rather it is an ongoing interaction with environmental influences which
results in eventual personality traits.
c. Physical illness: A physical illness occurring in childhood may cause
widespread emotional and sometimes intellectual difficulties.
Some common disorders:
i.

Epilepsy few if any epileptic children escape a measure of personality

difficulty. There are usually unhappy, fretful, lack confidence and are
excessively sensitive.

ii.

FTT Failure to thrive. The weight of the child remains below the 3 rd
percentile for their age. The causes may be organic or nonorganic.

iii.

Asthma From a psychological standpoint this disease itself is a

symptom of anxiety and in severe cases psychotherapy must be in close
conjunction with medical treatment.

22

iv.

Sleep disorders Sleepwalking, sleep talking, night terrors, narcolepsy,

bad dreams.

v.

Enuresis Involuntary incontinence of urine after age 4.

Precipitates behavioral problems of aggression and shyness
which disappear in some when bladder control is achieved. In
others there is another problem underlying the bedwetting
and it persists even after bladder control is attained.

vi.

Encopresis Uncontrolled defection, rarer than uneresis.

There are two types :

Primary linked to environmental condition e.g.

faulty training (20%)
Secondary the child loses previously acquired
control (60%)

Can cause serious psychiatric disorders due to feelings of humiliation and selfdebasement

vii.

Anorexia nervosa Severe starvation leading to

devastating weight loss. Over 90% are teenaged
girls and the symptoms are behavioral, physical
and psychological.

4. PSYCHOSOCIAL ELEMENTS

a. Discipline: Both excessively harsh and excessively lax discipline can have
negative effects.
b.

Death: The risk of psychiatric disorder following a parents death

is greatest at age 3 to 4 especially if it involves the same-sex
parent.
23

c.

School:
For example, school phobia and anxietymotivated refusal to attend school. Schools are critical elements in
personality adjustment. In school the child assesses his own
competence and develops his self-image.

d.

Stress: Three kinds of stress:

Home based stress
School based stress
Neighborhood stress

Stress leads to behavior problems in the following manner:

STRESS

Perception of stress

Childs cognitive level

Response to stress

Childs level of behavioral organization

Compensatory adaptive mechanism

BEHAVIOR
(aggression , withdrawal, morbid fantasies etc.)

5. LEARNING DISORDERS

These are frequently the most common problems that plague children. Often
psychiatric help is needed because of accompanying emotional / behavioral
difficulties.
a. Developmental Learning Disorders

24

Levine, Brooks and Shonkoff

(1980) attempt to link developmental
characteristics with clinical dysfunctions in children with learning problems.
The categories are as follows:

Selective attention and activity

Visual-spatial and Gestalt Processing
Temporal-Sequential Organization and Segmental Processing
Perceptive Language function
Expressive language function
Memory
Voluntary Motor function
Developmental Facilitation

b. Underachievement
Children rarely perform at the expected level but if performances vary
markedly from the norm then there is cause for concern.
There is then the need to ask:
Is this due to general backwardness?
Only in certain subjects?
Is it a loss of previously acquired skills?

CONCLUSION
Most children develop normally and most manifest problems in their development.
Some problems may be transitory with no lingering effects, while others may be more
serious and the prognosis doubtful. Workers with problem children will have to
assess whether the childs problems have become psychically internalized and so
have come to have an independent existence apart from his surroundings, or
whether the symptoms are a direct result of present day environmental stress and
would consequently be very much improved by direct modification of the childs
surroundings and the forces which impinge upon him.

LEARNING GUIDE: Complete the following table based on your reading.

Pattern OF Behavior Problem

General Characteristics
and Causes
25

Classroom Behaviour

1.

2.

3.

4.

26