Emotional and behavioral disability refers to a certain set of disorders which affect children and adolescents. While some of the disability issues can be considered normal for children, they often lead to the development of chronic hostility, defiance, aggression, and disruption. Such disorders often cause a lot of problems at home, work or school, spoil relationship, and make it almost impossible to lead a healthy and happy way of life. Depression and bipolar disorder can result from the behavioral disorders of children. Nowadays, the most vulnerable group of people who easily succumb to these problems are students. Poor time-management, lack of motivation in combination with acute psychological situations at home, as well as among peers, lead to the excessive stress, nervousness, and often aggressive behavior which is especially typical for teenagers. Therefore, it is vital to track down the causes of this illness and try to figure out the best treatment that can at maximum mitigate harmful effects on both the ill person and his or her surroundings, if not cure completely.
People affected by behavioral disability may throw extended and frequent tantrums, harm others or even themselves, commit crimes, smoke, or use strong drugs, as well as alcohol, lie often, be openly disobedient, and experiment with sex at an early age. Frequently, they may skip or totally fail at work or school. Such people are inclined to suicidal endeavors twice as often as people who do not suffer from behavioral or emotional disorders.
Despite the fact that it is quite difficult to establish the cause of behavioral disability, risk factors can be easily tracked. Family record of substance abuse or mental illness, influence of tobacco or illegal drugs during the period of fetal development, as well as constant stress, abuse, poor supervision, and extremely harsh discipline with unexpected outburst may directly lead to such problems. It is often observed among children who suffer from behavioral disorders that they are prone to have other emotional mental or behavioral disorders, including attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder.
Behavioral disorders cannot be associated with psychiatric issues, including schizophrenia, major depression, or serious problems with personal development (for example, Autism Spectrum disorders). Behavioral disability is diagnosed in young people whose behavior does not allow them to function successfully in educational environment, endangering either their peers or themselves. There are two categories of these disabilities: Conduct disorder (more severe) and oppositional defiant disorder (less aggressive and serious).
The indispensable characteristic of conduct disorder is a recurring and continual model of behavior when the essential rights of other individuals or main age-corresponding norms of society are violated. Students with this disorder are allocated to self-contained classrooms or assigned special programs until there is a significant improvement in their behavior, so they can participate in general educational settings. Individuals with conduct problems are extremely aggressive, and tend to hurt other students. They rebel or ignore conventional behavioral rules.
Students with oppositional defiance disorder behave calmer but are prone to be negative, defiant and argumentative. They are not aggressive, destructive or violent, as those affected by conduct disorder. However, their inability to collaborate with peers or adults frequently isolates them from the rest of society and prevents them from social, as well as academic success. The common feature of both disorders is that they are usually diagnosed only in individuals under age eighteen. Individuals older than eighteen are commonly evaluated for any antisocial behavior or similar personality problems that prevent society from successful and safe functioning. These are usually psychiatric disorders which include eating, manic-depression (bipolar), anxiety, psychotic, and obsessive-compulsive disorders. The treatment of these problems is the same as the treatment of behavioral and emotional disorders for individuals under eighteen years old.
Serious or old behavioral disability can be extremely difficult to treat; nonetheless, early identification and interference may be very helpful. The main goal of the treatment often focuses around the skill development for both adults and children. Participation of a health care professional is essential to choose the most appropriate course of cure. Community, educational, and various social programs can also mitigate the harmful impact.
Other important symptoms of emotional disability are constant problems with sleeping, suicidal or irrational behavior, risky, violent, and destructive actions which cause physical harm; alcohol poisoning, drugs overdose, threatening activities, sharp mood swings as well as other factors that may cause significant harm to the patient and people around him or her should be the first sign to address a health care professional for immediate examination.
The best ways to mitigate and improve the behavioral and emotional disability of the students, it is vital to:
– Avoid, ignore or rationalize bad behavior;
– Develop a clear pattern of punishments and rewards;
– Pay more attention to the activities of the students;
– Set clear expectations;
– Reduce stress at home, as well as in class;
– Participate more in the personal life of the student;
– Give the students with behavioral or emotional disability the opportunity to make their own decisions, however, set strict limits to what is right and what is wrong;
– Never punish good behavior if it is still not good enough but the students are trying;
– Discipline only in a calm state of mind and only according to the level of misbehavior.
Students who suffer serious emotional or behavioral disorders are unable to learn and it cannot be explained by sensory, health, or intellectual factors. They cannot sustain or start new mutual relationships with either teachers or peers. Even in typical environments and situations they can behave inadequately or inappropriately. These students are constantly haunted with depression or feel totally unhappy, frequently being unable to explain the reasons of such mood. Fears of any kind are everywhere with these students, especially, concerning their school and family life.
Students who were diagnosed with behavioral disorder often sign up for special education support, attending general classes at the same time. The majority, however, start self-contained programs in order to obtain the behavioral, emotional and social skills and work out strategies which will help them cope with general education programs. Sadly, a lot of students with emotional or behavioral problems are assigned special programs that limit their interaction with the students from the local schools, as the environment fails to respond to their needs.
Emotional and behavioral disability constitutes a serious problem in the today’s society; the problem which was not known just a couple of decades ago. Technological and scientific progress creates not only easier life of quick pace, but also a large number of ecological, social, and personal issues that make people take unreasonable steps in their run after the material treasures of the world.