1. Psychology 142b Exceptional Children: Behaviour Disorders Class Time: Tuesdays, 7-10 p.m.
Lecturer: Dr. Anne Krupka,
Rm. 6409, SSC
Office hours: Tuesdays, 5:00-6:00 p.m.
TA: Mor Barzel
Office hours: Wednesdays, 12 to 1 p.m.

2. Outline: Lecture 1, Jan. 7, 2003 Chapter 1
Course introduction
Defining & identifying disordered behaviour
How common are behaviour disorders?
Risk and resilience
Historical influences & current practice

3. Which Behaviour is Abnormal?
A university student whose girlfriend decides to break up with him - he becomes depressed, can’t sleep, loses appetite, stops going to classes, stops taking showers, stays in his room all day.
A girl who several times a week secretly eats a half gallon of ice cream, a bag of cookies, a large pizza, then goes to bathroom and vomits - otherwise she is a successful university student.
A boy walking in the hallway singing an operatic aria and oblivious to the stares of other students.

4. Defining Disordered Behaviour
What does it mean to be Abnormal?
Deviation from the average
Common assumption: deviation is negative or harmful
Determining what is normal and abnormal is an arbitrary process

5. Defining Disordered Behaviour
What is Psychopathology?
Traditionally defined as a pattern of behavioral, cognitive, or physical symptoms, that is associated with one or more of:
distress
disability
increased risk for further suffering or harm

6. What determines if behaviour is abnormal?
1. Sociocultural Norms
subcultural norms
situational norms
gender norms
change over time
2. Developmental age norms
3. Subjective feelings of others

7. Competence
Must consider not only the degree of maladaptive behavior, but also children’s competence (the ability to adapt in the environment and achieve normal developmental milestones)
Knowledge of developmental tasks is fundamental for determining if there are impairments in developmental progress
See Table 1.1 for examples of developmental tasks

8. Identifying Abnormality
Need to account for:
chronological age
cognitive development
social development
family context
cultural context
View behaviour in light of:
age appropriateness
frequency, intensity & duration
shifts or changes
Is there a mismatch between the behaviour and the environment?

9. Developmental Pathways
Refers to the sequence and timing of behaviors, and the relationship between them over time
Two types of developmental pathways:
Multifinality: similar early experiences lead to different outcomes
Equifinality: different factors lead to a similar outcome
See Figure 1.1 in text

10. Developmental Pathways
There are many contributors to disordered outcomes in each child.
Contributors vary among children who have the disorder.
Children express features of their disturbances in different ways.
Pathways leading to particular disorders are numerous and interactive.

11. Developmental Course of a Disorder
Transient developmental crises
time-limited, grow out of it
disorder improves on its own, usually as a result of development
Persistent behavioural disorder
problem continues
Episodic difficulties
recovers from the disorder but relapses into the disorder at a later time

12. Epidemiology: Prevalence - no. of cases at any one time
Study of the occurrence & distribution of a disorder in the general population
Prevalence - no. of cases at any one time
Incidence - no. of new cases that appear within specific time period
Prevalence of mental health problems is unevenly distributed but epidemiological studies are plagued by methodological problems
are there different ages of onset?
are there gender differences?
do contextual factors play a role?

13. General Findings
1 in 5 children has a significant mental health problem; 1 in 10 meets criteria for a specific psychological disorder.
Fewer than 10% of children with mental health problems receive proper service.

14. Ontario Child Health Study (Offard et al., 1989)
In 1989, roughly 468,000 (18.1%) 4 to 16 year olds were suffering from some type of psychiatric disorder.
Two thirds of these children suffered from more than one disorder.
Only 16% received therapeutic intervention.

15. Canadian Institute of Child Health
24% of boys and 17% of girls have one or more emotional or behavioural disorder.
5% of male youth and 12% of female youth years of age have experienced a major depressive episode.
23% of boys and 10% of girls get into many fights, and 16% of boys and 11% of girls are cruel or mean to others or bully others.

16. General Findings
Research demonstrates that 18% to 20% (or 1.5 million) of Canadian children and youth are at specific risk for mental, emotional, and behavioural problems. (Canadian Institute of Child Health, 1994)

17. The Role of Contextual Factors
Poverty and Socioeconomic Disadvantage
associated with greater rates of learning impairments & academic problems, conduct problems, chronic illness, hyperactivity, and emotional disorders
Challenges Facing Minority Children
very few differences in rate of disorders emerge in relation to race or ethnicity, once effects of SES, age, sex, & referral status are controlled
Child Maltreatment
adverse effects are particularly devastating with regard to adjustment at school, with peers, and in future relationships

18. Risk & Resilience Risk Factors (Vulnerability factors)
increase vulnerability to psychopathology
can be in child, environment, or in both
Resiliency [Protective Factors]
helps child fight off or recover from negative experiences
Protective Triad of Resources
individual, familial, & extra-familial

19. Factors Involved in Risk & Resiliency
RISK FACTORS
Constitutional (internal, biological)
Family (economics, abuse, conflict, family size)
Emotional & Interpersonal
Intellectual & Academic
Environmental/Ecological
Non-normative Stressful Life Events
RESILIENCIES
Individual - intellect, self-esteem, disposition, talents
Family - relationship with parents, parenting style, economic advantages, network of extended family
Extra-familial - bonds outside the family, school, involvement with pro-social organizations
see Figure 1.2

20. Historical Views of Child Psychopathology
The Emergence of Social Conscience
Historically, children often ignored or subjected to harsh treatment because of belief that they would die, were possessed, or were simply owned by parents
John Locke (17thC) and Jean-Marc Itard (19thC) advanced the belief that children should be treated with kindness and compassion

21. Historical Views [cont’d]
Psychiatric Disorder and Mental Retardation
In late 19thC, distinction made between individuals with MR (“imbeciles”) and those with psychiatric disorders (“lunatics”)
Children with normal cognitive abilities but disturbing behavior said to be suffering from “moral insanity”
Advances in medical science led to replacement of moral insanity view by the organic disease model

22. Historical Views [cont’d]
Early Biological Attributions
Early attempts at biological explanations for abnormal behavior were biased in favor of locating the cause of the problem within the individual
The view of mental disorders as “diseases” led to eugenics and segregation

23. Historical Views [cont’d]
Early Psychological Attributions
Psychological influences did not emerge until early 1900’s
Psychoanalytic theory linked mental disorders to childhood experiences- for the first time mental disorders not viewed as inevitable
Behaviorism laid foundation for studying conditioning and elimination of problematic behavior

24. Historical Views [cont’d]
Evolving Forms of Treatment
Until late 1940’s, most children with intellectual or mental disorders were institutionalized
From , number of children in institutions decreased while number of children in foster families and group homes increased
In 1950’s and 1960’s, behavior therapy was the systematic approach to treatment