Training series for Parents, Teachers, and children
Antisocial behaviour and adult criminality.
Are the correlates for girls with early-onset conduct problems necessarily the same as for boys? It has been shown that externalizing symptoms such as disruptive, impulsive, hyperactive, inattentive, and overtly aggressive behaviors are important risk factors for boys’ continuing development of ODD and CD, whereas internalizing symptoms are not. In the absence of evidence, one cannot assume that this is equally true for girls.
This paper reports on a quantitative evaluation of a group-based programme designed to promote parent infant attachment and child.
What is qualitative research: Why should we do it? After all, isn’t quantitative research the only “legitimate” method of scientific research – objective, verifiable, and methodologically rigorous? Does qualitative research have scientific integrity? Is it reliable? Valid? Generalizable? Can it add anything new to the findings of quantitative research? Is it publishable: After all haven’t psychology journals adhered almost exclusively to quantitative models of research?
These are some of the questions the first author of this paper asked herself when the second author suggested that they undertake a qualitative analysis of parents’ experiences living with their conduct-problem children.
A recent and compelling study entitled ‘Neurons to Neighborhoods’, conducted by the Board on Children, Youth, and Families of the Institute of Medicine (USA) calls attention to the importance of early emotional development in young children. Based on a careful review of neuroscience and developmental science, it highlights compelling evidence that a child?s earliest experiences and relationships set the stage for how he or she manages feelings and impulses, and relates to others (Raver & Knitzer, 2002). This paper discusses data from studies of behavioural and emotional problems and prosocial behaviour in a community sample of 362 Portuguese preschool children (age 3 to 6 years) and examine how these problems vary, as hypothesized, with parental practices. Each mother/father completed the Portuguese translation of two measures: Parenting Practices Questionnaire (adapted from the Oregon Social Learning Centre?s discipline questionnaire and revised for young children by Webster-Stratton, Reid and Hammond, 2001); Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (Goodman, 1997). Implications for prevention and intervention, in terms of parenting education and support, and for the development of social policies are discussed. Key words: parental practices; emotional and behavioural problems; prosocial behaviour; preschool; parenting training; parental education; SDQ.
The purpose of the current project was to determine the prevalence of conduct problems, low social competence, and associated risk factors in a sample of 4-year-old low-income children (N = 426) from 64 Head Start classrooms in the Seattle area.
Results suggest that young children with conduct problems have deficits in their social information processing awareness or interpretation of social cues – they overestimate their own social competence and misattribute hostile intent to others. Tests of cognitive prolem solving and observations of peer play interactions indicated that the children with conduct problems and significantly fewer postitive problem-solving strategies and positive social skills, more negative conflict management strategies and delayed play skills with peers.
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Abstract
The Incredible Years (IY) parent, teacher, and child training series, developed by Carolyn Webster-Stratton, has been studied extensively over.
A recent UK government-commissioned report on early intervention stated that ?what parents do is more important than who they are? (Allen, 2011, p. xiv). The report emphasised the importance of support for families at disadvantage at an early age before behavioural and social problems become entrenched and more expensive to tackle. Children classified as securely attached in the first 12 to 18 months develop better peer relationships at pre-school (Sroufre, Fox, & Pankake, 1983) and achieve better academic outcomes (Pearson et al., 2011).
The increased emphasis on investing support for families before children enter school has increased the need for assessment tools that support and encourage positive parenting. Identifying the positive parental behaviours that promote healthy child development is challenging as many of the current observational codes have been designed for parents? interactions with older children. This article describes the development of a new observational code to analyse the behaviour of mothers playing with their baby in the first 18 months. The six predetermined positive parenting behaviours are analysed using video recordings from the home. Practitioners can be trained to use the code and a manual facilitates future researchers and clinicians to evaluate parent behaviour with their infant in a natural environment and with minimal disturbance to the family.
