Child Psychological Disorders - Treatment Techniques

Conduct Problems Treatment (Part 2)

Course: PSYC 337: Child Psychological Disorders

Problem-Solving Skills Training (PSST)

• Overview:

  • Targets biased information processing.
  • Teaches several key steps:
  • Encoding social cues: Learning to notice and process social signals accurately.
  • Interpreting social cues: Understanding the meaning and intent behind social signals.
  • Response search: Generating a range of potential responses to social scenarios.
  • Response selection: Choosing the most appropriate response from the generated options.
  • Response enactment: Practicing the chosen response in a social context.
  • Role Play: Engages children in common social scenarios to enhance skill application.

• Effectiveness:

  • Proven to reduce aggression and disruptive behaviors in school-aged children.
  • Sustained improvements observed for over 1 year.
  • Combining Problem Management Training (PMT) with PSST results in better outcomes than either treatment alone.

Multisystemic Therapy (MST)

• Overview:

  • Designed for children and adolescents demonstrating serious antisocial and violent behaviors.
  • Based on Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory, highlighting the influence of environmental systems on behavior.
  • Treatment duration is intensive, lasting between 3-5 months.
  • Involves therapists working in teams of 3-5, available 24/7 for support.

• Targets:

  • Parents:
  • Focus on improving parenting skills: discipline, supervision, and daily interactions.
  • Remove potential barriers such as marital conflict, mental health issues, and social isolation.
  • Promote overall family well-being.
  • Schools:
  • Foster parent involvement and monitor school attendance.
  • Act as advocates for the children’s educational and social needs.
  • Peers:
  • Monitor children's interactions and whereabouts.
  • Help identify and build new peer groups.
  • Enhance social skills to foster positive relationships.

• Benefits:

  • Reduced interaction with deviant peers.
  • Fewer disruptive behaviors in various settings.
  • Decreased likelihood of re-arrest for serious crimes.
  • Reduced risk of out-of-home placement.
  • Positive effects extend to siblings and parents.
  • Note: MST is not widely available in all areas.