CHILD PROBLEMS

Auckland Star, Volume LXXV, Issue 195, 18 August 1944, Page 3

CHILD PROBLEMS

TREATMENT METHODS PSYCHIATRIC APPROACH "Treatment of anti-social behaviour should essentially be treatment of the underlying cause," said Dr. Elizabeth Hughes yesterday, when addressing the Auckland medical post-graduate committee's course in psychiatry on behaviour problems in childhood. "This may involve psychiatric help for maladjusted parents, change of school, rearrangement of leisure hours, separation from an overpowering superior sibling and treatment for any discoverable physical defect," continued Dr. Hughes.

"It should be remembered that all children will, on isolated occasions, be found guilty of anti-social behaviour, but unless there is emotional maladjustment, intellectual inferiority or some chronic subclinical physical condition leading to fatigue and irritability the offences will not be persistent.

"A first offence should be met by a warning, a second offence by prompt but not excessive punishment (with no public disgrace and a minimum of moralising), a third offence by a thorough investigation and readjustment, which may require trained psychiatric help."

In dealing with problem children it was important that the doctor should take a full personal history of the child and of its family and surroundings. A family doctor was usually admirably situated to undertake this himself, having visited the home and probably seen all members of the household.

In stressing the importance of a thorough physical examination, Dr. Hughes said it was important to remember that minor degrees of illhealth, malnutrition or fatigue would have much more marked effects on the intellectual performance and emotional stability of a child than of an adult, and that serious behaviour problems might result from chronic mild illness, vitamin deficiency or unrecognised visual or hearing defect. B.ehaviciur- problems might occur even in .y.oung infants, and many psychologists held that such disturbances laid the foundation for later neurosis.

"Intellectual defect which can be measured accurately only by intelligence or development tests is found commonly in association with certain types of problem behaviour, particularly the delinquencies, that lead to an appearance in Court.. Stealing, truancy and certain sexual offences occur commonly among children whose intelligence is below an average level."

Other lectures delivered to-day were "Th* Epilepsies," by Major Warren T. Brown; "Anxiety States," by Dr. T. G. Short, and "Schizophrenia," by Dr. K. R. Stallworthy. A .clinical demonstration was given by Drs; H: Burrell and R." Bellringer. Dr. F. J. Gwynne was chairman for the day and the programme was carried out at the Auckland Mental Hospital.