Emotion regulation, aggression, and sleep

Emotion Dysregulation

Lack of control/disorganized response to a situation. Inability to cope with a situaition or communicate needs

Emotion Regulation

Using coping/communication needs. In kids, this means signalling to the parent that they are distressed and accepting comfort.

Parents & Regulation

How parents respond to their children’s emotional reactions shapes children’s emotion regulation. Children learn emotion regulation skills when parents are attuned to their needs, provide comfort, and give them the words to communicate their needs. Also promotes a secure attachment, as children learn they have someone to rely on

Joussemet Study

Measured aggression in 6-year-olds every 6 months and found that aggression is a risk factor for poor outcomes. They measured parenting strategies and child temperament. Findings were

1. There are 4 trajectories of aggression 

   1. high to low

   2. low to low

   3. low to high

   4. high to high

2. Risk factors for the last two were Boys, those with difficult temperaments, younger moms, low SES, parental separation

3. Authoritative parenting predicts aggression

4. Autonomy helps children learn emotion regulation

Encouraging autonomy

1. Structure the environment so kids can explore and be successful. Anticipate when they will struggle so you can plan around it

2. Don’t force kids to eat food

3. Don’t ask yes/no questions. Instead, state the behavior you want to see

4. Use diversion/distraction to avoid power struggles

5. Recognize skill deficits for what they are instead of viewing them as defiance

Discipline Strategies

1. Directly administer consequences after behaviors

2. Be warm and supportive

3. Help the child understand the reason for the consequence

4. Set expectations and follow through on consequences

5. Be consistent with discipline

6. Set age-appropriate expectations

7. Change strategies depending on the context (e.g., party vs home)

8. Be proactive: work to fix problems before they arise

9. Ensure consequences are contingent on behavior

10. Focus on positive behaviors

Ineffective Discipline

1. Interparent discipline: parents use different and conflicting discipline strategies

2. Intraparent discipline: Parent uses inconsistent strategies

3. Harsh and explosive discipline

4. Permissive discipline

Sleep difficulties

1. 45% of parents report sleep problems in children after 6 months

2. Children’s sleep deprivation is associated with maternal depression and use of physical punishment

Sleepwaking is normal through

36 months

Night waking solutions

1. Education: on developmentally appropriate sleep (preventative and time efficient)

2. Pharmacological treatment, such as melatonin

3. Behavioral management, like sleep training, bedtime fading, etc.

Sleep Training

Uses operant conditioning to change sleep associations. Uses extinction where parents let the infant “cry it out” Works, but hard to follow through because it is hard to let your kid cry.

Graduated Extinction

Sleep training, but on a fixed schedule. You are ignoring crying on a schedule where intervals get longer accross the night and accross days. 

Bedtime Fading

Used for resistance at bedtime. Putting the kid to bed when they are tired and slowly pushing that bedtime 15 minutes earlier each night.

Scheduled Awakenings

Waking the child up at set intervals. Not for those with sleep-waking problems.