Chapter 1, page 10-17
Children’s behavior can be difficult to classify into its causes, expression, and contributing
factors.
Central questions to define and understand abnormal child behavior:
1. How do we judge what is normal?
2. When does an issue become a problem?
3. Why are some children’s abnormal patterns of behavior relatively continuous from
early childhood through adolescence and into adulthood, whereas other children
show more variable patterns of development and adaptation?
Childhood disorders are accompanied by various layers of abnormal behavior or
development, ranging from the more visible and alarming (such as delinquent acts or
physical assault), to the more subtle yet critical (such as teasing and peer rejection), to the
more hidden and systemic (such as depression or parental rejection).
To judge what is abnormal, we need to be sensitive to each child’s stage of development and
consider each child’s unique methods of coping and ways of compensating for difficulties
A psychological disorder = a pattern of behavioral, cognitive, emotional, or physical
symptoms shown by an individual. It is associated with one or more of these 3 prominent
features:
1. The person shows some degree of distress, such as fear or sadness.
2. His or her behavior indicates some degree of disability, such as impairment that
substantially interferes with or limits activity in one or more important areas of
functioning, including physical, emotional, cognitive, and behavioral areas.
3. Such distress and disability increase the risk of further suffering or harm, such as
death, pain, disability, or an important loss of freedom.
→ these features do not attempt to attribute causes or reasons for abnormal behavior to the
individual alone
Terms used to describe abnormal behavior do not describe people; they only describe
patterns of behavior that may or may not occur in certain circumstances.
Stigma = a cluster of negative attitudes and beliefs that motivates fear, rejection, avoidance
and discrimination with respect to people with mental illnesses. It leads to prejudice and
discrimination against others on the basis of race, ethnicity, disabilities, sexual orientation,
body size, biological sex, language and religious beliefs.
→ it may cause; low self-esteem, isolation and hopelessness etc.
The primary purpose of using terms such as disorder and abnormal behavior for describing
the psychological status of children and adolescents is to aid clinicians and researchers in
describing, organizing, and expressing the complex features often associated with various
patterns of behavior. By no means do the terms imply a common cause, since the causes of
abnormal behavior are almost always multifaceted and interactive!
DSM-5 guidelines are used to classify and diagnose mental disorders
,Competence = the ability to successfully adapt in the environment
Development competence = the child’s ability to use internal and external resources to
achieve a successful adaption. This successful adaptation varies across culture and
ethnicity.
Minority children and families, as well as those with socioeconomic disadvantages, must
cope with multiple forms of racism, prejudice, discrimination, oppression, and segregation,
all of which significantly influence a child’s adaptation and development.
Developmental tasks = they tell how children typically progress within each domain as they
grow. They include broad domains of competence such as conduct and academic
achievement.
Conduct = indicates how well a person follows the rules of a particular society → one of the
fundamental domains
Expectations:
- Young age → begin controlling their behavior and to comply with their parents’
requests
- Children enter school→ follow the rules for classroom conduct and refrain from
harming others
- Adolescence → follow the rules set by school, home, and society without direct
supervision
In addition to distinguishing between normal and abnormal adaptation, we must consider the
temporal relationship between emerging concerns in early childhood and the likelihood that
they will lead to problems later on.
Developmental pathway = the sequence and timing of particular behaviors and possible
relationships between behaviors over time. → It helps us understand the course and nature
of normal and abnormal development.
Multifinality = the concept that various outcomes may stem from similar beginnings
Equifinality = different factors lead to a similar outcome
In summary:
,Diversity in how children acquire psychological strengths and weaknesses is a hallmark of
abnormal child psychology. Because no clear cause-and-effect relationship exists for each
child and adolescent disorder, the following assumptions need to be kept firmly in mind:
- There are many contributors to disordered outcomes in each individual.
- Contributors vary among individuals who have the disorder.
- Individuals with the same specific disorder express the features of their disturbance
in different ways (e.g., some children with a conduct disorder are aggressive,
whereas others may be destructive to property or engage in theft or deceit).
- The pathways leading to any particular disorder are numerous and interactive, as
opposed to unidimensional and static.
With resilience one can adapt and change life circumstances for the better.
Risk factor = a variable that precedes a negative outcome of interest and increases the
chances that the outcome will occur.
Protective factor = a personal or situational variable that reduces the chances for a child to
develop a disorder.
→ Protective factors vary tremendously in magnitude and scope, and not all three resources
are necessary.
Acute, stressful situations as well as chronic adversity put children’s successful development
at risk. Although not all children develop problems later, instead they seem resilient despite
their stress-filled environments.
Resilience = it varies according to the type of stress, its context and similar factors
Resilience is seen in children across cultures, despite the extraordinary circumstances that
some may face.
Ongoing interactions exist between protective and risk factors within the child, between the
child and his or her surrounding, and among risk factors themselves.
Characteristics of resilience
Individual:
- good intellectual functioning
- appealing, sociable, easygoing disposition
- self-efficacy, self-confidence, high self-esteem
- talents
- faith
Family:
- close relationship to caring parent figure
- authoritative parenting, warmth, structure, high expectations
- socioeconomic advantages
- connections to extended supportive family networks
School and community:
- adults outside the family who take an interest in promoting the child’s welfare
- connections to social organizations
- attendance at effective schools
Chapter 1, page 20
, Boys and girls express their problems in different ways.
Boys (more common) → hyperactivity, autism, childhood disruptive behavior disorders, and
learning and communication disorders
Girls (more common) → most anxiety disorders, adolescent depression, and eating
disorders.
Sex differences in problem behaviors are negligible in children under the age of 3 but
increase with age.
Internalizing problems = include anxiety, depression, somatic symptoms and withdrawn
behavior
Externalizing problems = encompass more acting-out behaviors, such as aggression and
delinquent behavior
→ Externalizing problems for boys start out higher than for girls in preschool and early
elementary years, and that these problems decrease gradually for both boys and girls until
the rates almost converge by age 18. The opposite pattern emerges for internalizing
problems.
Resilience in boys is associated with households in which there is a male role model (such
as a father, grandfather, or older brother), structure; rules, and some encouragement of
emotional expressiveness. In contrast, girls who display resilience come from households
that combine risk taking and independence with support from a female caregiver.
