Describes a comprehensive behavior management system that provides a professional base for school programs and long-term teaching efforts to produce responsible citizens. Schools can help change society's discipline-punishment philosophy by establishing appropriate administrative structure and training goals stressing openness, honesty, sincerity,…

A concealed video camera can record learning disabled students' behavior and provide a nonjudgmental way for them to see how they appear to others. Such an approach can include a positive emphasis on redirecting energy as well. (CL)

The case of a disruptive 10-year-old is cited to illustrate the effectiveness of a positive approach. Noted are the need for some children to be helped to cope in unstructured situations and the value of avoiding confrontation and keeping accurate records. (CL)

Research on child and adolescent conduct problems has proliferated over the past 15 years, resulting in an extensive array of risk factors, processes, and targets for intervention. To capitalize fully on this extensive research base and contribute effectively to public mental health, the field now needs to take stock of what is known about child…

A five-and-one-half-year-old boy with encopresis (fecal soiling) was successfully treated by a cognitive behavior modification approach in which the child's lavatory time was scheduled and the situation was discussed in an accepting but positive manner. (CL)

The article describes a direct observation system designed to help teachers identify children with behavior problems. The system involves recording the frequency of four key target behaviors (noise, out-of-place, physical contact/destruction, and off task) emitted by the referred student and by a normative peer sample. (DLS)

A psychologist describes a counseling situation in which the divorced parents of an 11-year-old, behavior problem child disagreed about his future school placement. (CL)

Describes a New Jersey, principal-initiated program to change the undesirable behavior of disruptive, underachieving youngsters. Although the anticipated 80 percent success rate was not realized, results showed the positive growth recorded in most areas was impressive. (Author/LD)

This first person account opens a window onto the inner world of a troubled youth. This narrative describes a young boy's personal account of being dropped off at a facility for troubled youth, in hopes that his behavior will change.

Disagreements and conflicts in families with disruptive children often reflect rigid patterns of behavior that have become overlearned and automatized with repeated practice. These patterns are mindless: They are performed with little or no awareness and are highly resistant to change. This article introduces a new, mindfulness-based model of…

Background: PraderWilli syndrome (PWS) is a genetic disorder caused by the absence of expression of maternally imprinted genes on the long arm of chromosome 15 (15q 11-13). There are two main genetic sub-types: (1) deletion, caused by the absence of paternally derived genetic material; and (2) uniparental disomy (UPD), where two copies of…

Educators and psychologists are concerned about problem behavior. Fortunately, effective interventions and practices have been documented for addressing this problem behavior. However, sustained and expanded uses of these interventions and practices have not been consistent or widespread. One promising approach to the systemic and sustained…

The implementation of school-wide positive behavior support (PBS) initiatives has experienced considerable success. Student behaviors have improved, and teachers' attitudes about the remediation of misbehavior have become more positive when PBS is used. When teacher practice results in a positive outcome, there is a corresponding increase in…

Children with emotional challenges have often been seen as victims, but seldom as survivors. Persons who are able to overcome adversity can be strengthened by this experience as shown in this account of a youth struggling to surmount a traumatic life.

John M. Tyson Jr., the district attorney in Mobile County, Ala., has a prosecutor's zeal for convicting felons and a social worker's compassion for helping troubled people. Mr. Tyson believes that fighting juvenile crime starts in the schools, where the children are. The author discusses a program that Mr. Tyson created called the Helping Families…