Behaviour therapy focuses on human behaviour and annihilates unwanted behaviour. Generally behaviour therapy is used for people having mental health problems including addictions, phobias, anxiety and obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). According to behaviour therapists, behaviour is learned and hence it can be unlearned with the help of a therapy. They will study the thoughts and feelings that resulted in the formation of behaviour and the thoughts and feelings formed as a result of behaviour in depth.

Behavioural therapy is called as an action-based therapy as it aims to establish positive behaviour change. Psychoanalytic therapy is concentrated in excavating the past. Even though behavioural therapy also focuses on the past incidents to find out where and when a maladaptive behaviour was learned, it focuses more on present behaviour. One of the propositions of behavioural therapy is that behaviour could be learned and unlearned. The objective of behavioural therapy is to help the clients to learn new and positive behaviour which will solve the issues. On the nature of the problem the appropriate therapy can be done. The major disciplines of behavioural therapy are Applied Behaviour Aanalysis, Cognitive Behaviour Therapy and Social Learning Theory. The two important principles that form the basis of behavioural therapy are Classical Conditioning and Operant Cconditioning.

Behavioural therapy for children is aimed to reduce anxiety and unwanted behaviour. It will help a child find out his own inmost thoughts and replace bad thoughts with good and positive thoughts. A child is taught to respond to situations in a positive manner by the help of applied behaviour analysis. It analyses the behaviour of a child. This therapy rewards positive behaviour while punishing negative behaviour. Play therapy is designed for children and it offers them a chance to act out their problems through role play. It also allows them to interact with dolls and other objects to point out their problems. Kids with behavioural issues should be given some therapy that allows them to express themselves. And this would not have any negative impacts on them; instead it should encourage them to increase their level of trust with the therapist. Once trust is built, a child could start to learn the reasons for his behaviour and the factors which culminated in that particular behaviour and how the problems can be solved. Before beginning the therapeutic procedures parents should observe the child carefully and keep a record on what is going on with the child. Then only they should consult a therapist or psychologist.

This course will provide you an insight into an introduction on behaviour therapy for children, historical background of behavioural background, theoretical models, behaviour diagnosis, classification and initial assessment, therapeutic procedures, evaluation of child-behaviour therapy, implications and future trend, the role of teachers in solving behavioural issues, support for children with behavioural problems and importance of caregivers.

Syllabus

• Behavior Therapy for Children

• Historical Background

• Theoretical models

• Behavior Diagnosis, Classification and Initial Assessment

• Therapeutic Procedures

• Evaluation of Child-Behavior Therapy

• Implications and Future Trends

• The role of teachers in solving behavioural issues

• Support for children with behavioural problems

• Importance of Caregivers