A Means for Improving Social Exclusion and Anti-social Behaviour - Term Paper Example

Between ten to twenty-five percent of low-income children in their preschool and early-school-age have astonishingly been showing problematic aggressive behaviors, as the outcome of a national survey data shows (Webster-Stratton & Hammond, 1998). If these signs on children are not straightened out sooner, then by the age of eight (Eron, 1990) they shall most likely to be showing behavioral indications of emotional and behavioral problems (e.g., aggression, oppositional behavior, conduct problems).

They will start on that path of getting into trouble at school, dropping out and doing drugs. Worst case is they become the kind of societal delinquents expressing themselves through violence (Snyder, 2001; Tremblay, Mass, Pagani, & Vitaro, 1996). It is, therefore, apparent that is will be highly beneficial to both the children’s families and society if some methods to curtail the aggressiveness before age of eight are initiated. To decrease oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) and conduct disorder (CD) in young children there should be some form of parent training programs (Brestan & Eyberg, 1998).

(Hereafter ODD/CD problems shall be referred to as conduct problems since even if most young children with behavior problems meet the criteria for a diagnosis of ODD, several also exhibit the aggressive and antisocial features listed as criteria for the diagnoses of the CD but are not old enough to exhibit the criminal behaviors.)   Studies shows that at least two-thirds of young children who parents have undergone under a parenting program for this kind of problem have shown considerable behavioral improvements (for reviews, see Brestan & Eyberg, 1998; Taylor & Biglan, 1998).

Social learning theories have therefore found their proof in these studies regarding their emphasis that parenting style and discipline effectiveness play are keys to know children's social competence and decrease conduct problems (Patterson, De-Garmo, & Knutson, 2000). There seems to be a stiffness to the acceptance of psychological training programs where only 8.75% agreed that it would be effective in addressing anti-social behavior.