What is developmental psychopathology?

Developmental psychopathology combine questions of development on one

side, and maladaptive behaviors on the other. It is an approach or study created to
understand human development and its complex ideas. The main goal of developmental
psychopathology is to record the various pathways people take during times of
psychological difficulties as well as times of optimal psychological health. So, we can
define developmental psychopathology as the study of prediction of development of
maladaptive behavior and processes. A basic definition of the term would be the study of
change and development in maladaptive behavior. Combining the study of development
with the study of psychopathology broadens the scope of each term. From a developmental
perspective, it introduces the problems of change and transformation whereas from a
psychopathological perspective, it introduces the concept of individual difference and with
it, a variety of possible processes and outcomes. Developmental psychopathology begins
with the realization that maladaptive behaviors often have a historical cause(American
Psychiatric Association, 2000) Although quite a sum of theories with maladaptive behavior
agree to this, it is the psychoanalytic position which clearly expresses that developmental
perspective that disorders in adulthood have their roots in historical events, some of which
occur during infancy and childhood. Developmental psychopathology is concerned with
answering a broad set of questions so it can be used in a range of areas such as sociology,
psychology and etc(Davies, et. al., 2003)

What are risk factors? Protective Factors?

As a human grows and reaches their fully-fledged developmental
capabilities, there are several factors or variables that can help encourage or complicate the
process. These are referred to as risk and protective factors. These factors whether present
or absent help contribute to a youths mental health. Recognizing risk and protective
factors in a youths lifespan helps with prevention and intervention should that youth have a
mental health disorder(Angold et al., 1999) Risk and protective factors can affect youth at
different stages in life. At every stage, risks which occur can be changed through
prevention intervention. Risks in early childhood such as lying, can be prevented with
school or family intervention that will help the child develop the correct behavior. If the
issue is not focused upon, these negative behaviors might escalate and lead to even more
risks such as social retardation or even education problems which will escalate even further
and affect the child further down in life.
By definition, risk factors increase the likelihood of experiencing
psychological difficulties. A risk factor is also defined as a characteristic at the biological,
psychological, family, community and cultural level that precedes and is associated with a
likelihood of problem outcomes(Klein & Riso, 1993). A protective factor is defined as
characteristic at the biological, psychological, family, community and cultural level that is
associated with a lower likelihood of problem outcomes or that reduces the negative impact
of a risk factor on problem outcomes.
Some risk factors may be more powerful than others at certain stages during
development such as peer pressure during teenage years, just as some protective factors
such as parent-child bond can have a greater impact on reducing risks during the early
years. An important goal of prevention is to change the balance between risk and protective
factors so that protective factors outweigh the risk factors.

Poverty: How can it contribute to child psychopathology?

Poverty in childhood, means a child living in a family whose income falls
below specific levels necessary for minimum coverage of basic expenses. Research
throughout recent decades have documented the negative child outcomes associated with
living in poverty(Brooks-Gunn & Duncan, 1997) expecially when poverty is experienced
during the first 5 years of life((Duncan et al., 1998). It is understandable how poverty
affects a child mental health in the long run. It affects the child in areas such as emotion
and social being. A child who lives in poverty may not have the ability to afford certain
luxuries their peers have. For instance, if a child in poverty sees another child who has the
ability to spend money and buys certain items may make the child in poverty feel jealous,
inferior and sad. In the long run, this in turn may lead the child to stealing or indulge in
unhealthy activities such as gangsterism where he or she may feel in control. Children in
poverty may go astray and do activities which socially are unacceptable. This however, is
not the case for every child in poverty. We have heard of stories from successful individuals
who had lead hard lives in poverty as children. Individuals such as these, do not let this
disability hinder their lives and take them as challenges to perform and grow in mental
health and perform better than most children in school.

Community Violence: How can this contribute to child psychopathology? What are current
factors that may contribute to it?
Community violence is recognized as a major public health problem
(WHO, World Report on Violence and Health, 2002) A childs experience with violence has
been connected to many negative outcomes. Particularly social adaptation and educational
success. Every since the early 1980s, researchers working with children have become
aware of the extent to which many children experience or observe violence in their
neighborhoods. Community violence has a big impact on children. Community violence is
discussed widely at home so even if the child does not see community violence first hand,
they create pictures in their minds. Exposure to community violence affects the childs
view of the world and themselves. So their purpose of life, their expectations of their future
self and moral compass are being tampered with. Exposure to violence often interferes with
developmental tasks children need to accomplish in order to become socially acceptable
members of society. Children exposed to community violence often demonstrate a lower
achievement in school and poorer adaption to society(Stuber et al., 2002) Violent exposures
sometimes may lead to disturbances in cognitive functioning, emotional difficulties,
behavior and peer problems. The affects of community violence and violence exposure set
children on a course towards maladaptive outcomes. Although different types of violent
exposures have different effects on children, there are common symptoms among them.

Why are most psychological disorders of childhood more frequent among boys than girls?
Although there is not much study on this particular topic except for the few
which say that boys are more prone to ADHD and Autism is due to hereditary. Decades of
research have shown that males are at greater risk for neurodevelopmental disorders such as
autism than females. Boys, are five times more likely to have autism compared to girls.
What causes this has largely remained unknown. According to a team of researchers in the
U.S and Switzerland, this is due to what is called the female protective model. I feel that
childhood disorders are more frequent among boys because of the social responsibility of
being born male coupled with the persona and stigma of males. Ever since history was
recorded, males have been the one to take charge of the family and male children have been
taught to act a certain way, to carry themselves a certain way and to behave a certain way.
As a child, sometimes this responsibility may take its toll upon the child. Sometimes,
nature versus nurture also is a factor as to why childhood disorder is more common
amongst boys. According to Barbaressi, less educated parents may have less effective
parenting styles and may provide a less structured environment, leasing to ADHD
symptoms. Alternatively, low parental education may be a marker for parental educational
difficulties due to parental symptoms of ADHD, suggesting a genetic component in ADHD
development. This is suggested that girls have a higher tolerance towards harmful genetic
mutations.

At how young an age is it possible to identify mental disorders in children?

I think mental disorders can be identified starting at the age of three years
old. I feel at this age, when a child has reached a certain mental development, mental
disorders can be identified. At three years old, a child is able to speak, and act in a way that
would conform to society. If a child is constantly acting in such a manner that is not
tolerable, it is clear that a mental disorder is present. If a child is constantly hyperactive, has
non-existent impulse control and cannot stay focused like children their age, than that may
be a sign of ADHD. Causes of mental disorders are numerous and may include genetic or
environmental factors. Sometimes, when a family has a history of mental disorders, a child
may automatically contract the disorder so it may be diagnosed even earlier in a childs life.
To diagnose mental disorders, the ability of a childs brain to learn, think and solve is
checked. This is called an IQ test(Patterson et al., 1989)

Do you think that it is possible to discover a cure for any of the childhood disorders that
are currently included in the DSM-IV? If not, why not? If yes, which ones and why?
Yes, I believe that there will be cures for certain childhood disorders in the
DSM-IV. I believe that there will be a cure of Developmental Coordination
Disorder(CDC) or known as Developmental Dyspraxia. According to the DSM-IV, this
is a chronic neurological disorder beginning in childhood that can affect planning of
movements and co-ordination as a result of brain messages not being accurately transmitted
to the body. Developmental coordination disorder is diagnosed in the absence of other
neurological impairments such as cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy or Parkinsons
disease. It affects 5 to 6 percent of school aged children. It is known that doctors sometimes
prescribe cannabis to aid ADHD and this in turn, helps a child concentrate. So similar
prescriptions can be used to help treat CDC. The second disorder I believe for a cure will
be Tourettes disorders. A child has Tourettes when he displays symptoms such as
overwhelming urge to make movement, jerking of arms and production of repetitive noises
such as clicking, moaning or squealing. Studies have shown that abnormal
neurotransmitters such as dopamine and serotonin serve as a cause of Tourettes Syndrome.
As part of treatment, it is asked that family and friends do not give the child attention
during an attack of tics. If they do, a child may develop more tics. I feel that prescription
drugs can be used to help tics. Slow down the neurotransmitters so the child will not get tic
attacks frequently.

Conclusion
In conclusion for this assignment, I have learnt many things about
developmental psychopathology. How a person from young can grow and their
psychological growth has gone awry. I have also learnt that a child faces many challenges
growing up and are faced with difficulties that may affect them in the long run. Attention
much be given to children so as to reduce these psychological stresses. We as humans, still
have got a long way to research about our mental health as there are still many areas we are
still lacking in information. I hope that as a future psychologist, I will be able to contribute
towards the society in where they lack and improve the well-being of future human beings.

References
American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental
disorders (5th ed.).
Angold, A, Costello, E.J & Erkanli, A. (1999). J Child Psychol Psychiatry. : .
Klein, D.N & Riso, L.P. (1993). Psychiatric disorders: Problems of boundaries and
comorbidity. New York, Guilford: .
Brooks-gunn, J & Duncan, G.J. (1998). How much does childhood poverty affect the life
chances of children? . : .
Duncan, G.J et al. (1998). How much does childhood poverty affect the life chances of
children? American Sociological Review.
World health organization. (2002). World Report on Violence and Health. Brussels,
belgium:
Stuber, J et al. (2002). Determinants of counseling for children in Manhattan after the
September 11 attacks
Patterson, G.R, Debaryshe , B.D & Ramsey, E. (1989). A developmental perspective on
antisocial behavior .

NAME: DIAN BATO

STUDENT ID: 002F11115
MODULE: DISORDERS OF INFANCY AND CHILDHOOD
LECTURER: MISS BIANCA

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Cover page
Question 1
Question 2
Question 3
Question 4
Question 5
Question 6
Question 7
Conclusion
Reference

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