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Oppositionality

Prevention

Oppositionality can be minimized and oppositional defiant disorder can be prevented. The optimal approach would identify and lessen risk factors—such as coercive parenting, marital conflict, and parental depression—prior to the development of disruptive behaviors and clinical disorder. At present, however, most interventions target families where children already exhibit problem behaviors and aim to prevent further deterioration. In this type of intervention children are selected because of the severity of their disturbance at day care center or preschool, or by measures of family adversity or dysfunction.

Preventative programs basically involve modifications of parent management training programs and are delivered to groups of children at risk for these problems (e.g., children with difficult temperament or those who display marked oppositionality by the age of four or five years). There are other types of preventive interventions that also seem promising, for example classroom programs such as the "Good Behavior Game" (Kellam et al. 1994).

Bibliography

American Psychiatric Association (1994). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition. (DSM-IV). Washington, DC: Author.

Angold, A., and Costello, J. (1996). "Toward Establishing an Empirical Basis for the Diagnosis of Oppositional Defiant Disorder." Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 35:1205–1212.

Crijnen, A.; Achenbach, T. M.; and Verhulst, F. C. (1999). "Problems Reported by Parents of Children in Multiple Cultures: The Child Behavior Checklist Syndrome Constructs." American Journal of Psychiatry 156:569–574.

Fergusson, D. M. (1998). "Stability and Change in Externalising Behaviours." European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience 248:4–13.

Ho, Y. F. (1986). "Chinese Patterns of Socialization: A Critical Review." In The Psychology and Behaviour of the Chinese People, ed. M. H. Bond. Hong Kong: Oxford University Press.

Kazdin, A. (1998). "Parent Management Training: Evidence, Outcomes, and Issues." Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 36:1349–1356.

Kellam, S. G.; Rebok, G. W.; Ialongo, N.; and Mayer, L. S. (1994). "The Course and Malleability of Aggressive Behavior from Early First Grade into Middle School: Results of a Developmental Epidemiologically-Based Preventive Trial." Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry 35:259–289.

Rey, J. M., and Walter, G. (1999). "Oppositional Defiant Disorder." In Disruptive Behavior Disorders in Children and Adolescents: Review of Psychiatry, Vol. 18, ed. R. L. Hendren. Washington DC: American Psychiatric Press.

Sanders, M. R., and Markie-Dadds, C. (1996). "Triple P: A Multilevel Family Intervention Program for Children with Disruptive Behaviour Disorders." In Early Intervention and Prevention in Mental Health, ed. P. Cotton and P. H. Jackson. Melbourne: Australian Psychological Society.

Sanson, A., and Prior, M. (1999). "Temperamental and Behavioral Precursors to Oppositional Defiant Disorder and Conduct Disorder." In Handbook of Disruptive Behavior Disorders, ed. H. C. Quay and A. E Hogan. New York: Plenum Press.

Scott, S.; Spender, Q.; Doolan, M.; Jacobs, B.; and Aspland, H. (2001). "Multicentre Controlled Trial of Parenting Groups for Childhood Antisocial Behavior in Clinical Practice." British Medical Journal 323:1–7.

Shen, Y., and Wang, Y. (1995). "Behaviour Problems of Schoolchildren in Beijing: A Study of Prevalence and Risk Factors." In Chinese Societies and Mental Health, ed. T. Lin, W. Tseng, and E. Yeh. Hong Kong: Oxford University Press.

JOSEPH M. REY

SE-FONG HUNG

Additional topics

Marriage and Family EncyclopediaOther Marriage & Family TopicsOppositionality - Oppositionality And Oppositional Defiant Disorder, Causal Factors, Epidemiology, Treatment, Family's Response To Oppositionality