Definitions\Glossary
Behavioral and conduct problems
Behavior often described as aggressive, destructive, refusal to obey parents and teachers, tantrums, and disrupting in class. Specific behavioral disorders may include Conduct Disorder, Oppositional Defiant Disorder
Conduct Disorder
A repetitive and persistent pattern of behavior in which the basic rights of others or major social norms and rules are violated. Common signs: Aggression to people or animals; Destruction to property; Deceitfulness or theft; Serious violations of rules.
Oppositional Defiant Disorder
Often loses temper; often argues with adults; often actively defies or refuses to comply with adults’ requests or rules; often deliberately annoys people; often blames others for his/her behaviors; often touchy or easily annoyed by others; often angry and resentful; often spiteful or vindictive.
Pervasive Developmental Disorders
Autistic Disorder, Rhett’s Disorder, Childhood Disintegrative Disorder, Asperger’s Disorder
Autistic Disorder
Impairment in social interaction, communication, and restricted repetitive and stereotyped patterns of behavior, interests, and activities.
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Asperger’s Disorder
Impairment in social interaction and restricted, repetitive, and stereotyped patterns of behaviors, interests, and activities. This causes significant impairment in social, occupational and other areas of functioning. As opposed to Autistic Disorder, there is no clinically significant general delay in language or cognitive development.
Separation Anxiety
Characterized by developmentally inappropriate and excessive anxiety concerning separation from home or from those to whom the child is attached.
Attention-Deficit/ Hyperactivity
Inattention: often fails to give close attention to details; makes careless mistakes; difficulty sustaining attention in tasks or play; does not follow through on instructions; difficulty organizing; avoids, dislikes, or is reluctant to engage in tasks that require sustained attention
Hyperactivity: often fidgets with hands or feet, squirms; leaves seat in classroom or other situations; runs and climbs excessively in inappropriate situations; has difficulty playing or engaging in leisure activities quietly; talks excessively
Impulsivity: blurts out answers before questions have been completed; has difficulty awaiting turn; often interrupts or intrudes on others
Trauma
Any event that was experienced or witnessed that occurred once or over any length of time that causes the individual significant distress.
Abuse
Includes a long-term experience of either being abused or witnessing abuse, OR experiencing a traumatic short-term or one-time occurrence of abuse. The abuse may be one type, or a combination of, physical abuse, sexual abuse, or verbal and emotional abuse.
Neglect
The failure to provide for one’s self the good or services, including medical services which are necessary to avoid physical or emotional harm or pain or the failure to the caretaker to provide such goods or services.
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Emotional or Social Delay
When a child’s emotional or social development is behind established normal ranges for their age. Click here to view a list of common emotional and social milestones for children ages 3 years to 16 years of age: Milestones Checklist
Learning Disabilities
Learning disorders are academic difficulties experienced by children and adults of average to above-average intelligence. People with learning disorders have difficulty with reading, writing, mathematics, or a combination of the three. These difficulties significantly interfere with academic achievement or daily living.
Adjustment
Distress that is in excess (severity or length of time) of what would typically be expected given exposure to a particular stressor. The distress is causing significant impairment social or occupational/academic functioning and may be in the form of depression, anxiety, and conduct problems in children.
Depression
Depressed mood most of the day; markedly diminished interest or pleasure in all or most activities most of the day; significant weight loss or gain; inability to sleep or sleeping too much nearly every day; feeling of restlessness or feeling slow moving; feelings of worthlessness or excessive guilt; inability to concentrate; indecisiveness; recurrent thoughts of suicide or harming self
Dysthymia
Depressed mood for most of the day, for more days than not, for at least two years. In children and adolescents, mood can be irritable and duration must be at least one year.
Anxiety
Excessive anxiety and worry; restlessness or feeling keyed up or on edge; being easily fatigued; difficulty concentrating or mind going blank; irritable; muscle tension; sleep problems.
Self Mutilation
Self-mutilation is a general term for a variety of forms of intentional self-harm without the wish to die. Cutting one's skin with razors or knives is the most common pattern of self-mutilation. Others include biting, hitting, or bruising oneself; picking or pulling at skin or hair; burning oneself with lighted cigarettes, or amputating parts of the body.
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