Emotional Disturbance High

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31091, 21 June 1966, Page 11

Emotional Disturbance High

"The Press" Special Service AUCKLAND, June 15. “Amazed and appalled” by statistics of emotional disturbances among children, a small group in Auckland has formed a society to enlist the sympathy and help of the public. The New Zealand Emotionally Disturbed Children’s Society, as it is called, hopes to promote research into an illness which it believes can afflict about 10 per cent of New Zealand school children. Speaking for the society the president, Mr G. A. Roth, said it was a tragedy that a number of emotionally-dis-turbed children were not receiving therapy at an early age. “Proper treatment would allow them to take their place in society as normal citizens but some of those who are not treated could go into a mental institution or become social misfits,” he said. “As far as the society knows there is only one doctor specialising in child psychiatry in New Zealand. There is also a need for more psychological service clinics, not just for the children, but to help and guide their parents. Needing Help “In a school of about 500 there would be perhaps 50 emotionally-disturbed children needing help, but only about five or six would be referred to the psychological services.” Mr Roth said teachers must be trained to recognise emo-

tional disturbances. Another long-range ideal of the society was to see the establishment of a university chair in psychiatry. In the meantime, those closely concerned with helping children back to normal are coping as best they can. Last year the psychological clinic attached to the Department of Education in Auckland assessed 1100 children who had been referred orignally because of school work or behaviour problems. Psychologists found that almost one-third of the children seen had problems based on emotional disturbances.

This kind of disturbance, briefly defined, is outwardly detected by difficult behaviour, not only in the child but often also in the people responsible for the child. Can Be Temporary It is also apparent in the child’s reduced ability to cope with school work, in relationships with other children and general child responsibilities. The condition can be temporary but if not understood it can develop into a more serious, long-term disturbance. There are two extreme forms of emotional disturbance. One manifests itself in strong feelings of aggression, the other by severe withdrawal.

The withdrawn child is often the more disturbed and the illness harder to identify. Both categories often

develop anti-social feelings which can be focused against the home, the school or the community. The psychological service began in Auckland 13 years ago, mainly to deal with children having difficulty at school because of limited intelligence. In the last five years the service has placed more emphasis on the emotionallydisturbed child who is generally intellectually normal.

But the work of the service throughout New Zealand is hampered by lack of trained staff.

Another attempt to rehabilitate the emotionally-disturbed child was the establishment six years ago of the Mount Wellington Residential School, the only one of its kind in New Zealand. The school can accom-

modate about 25 children only and the average length of stay is two years. Newcomers to the school are placed in a developmental group where pressures are greatly relaxed. They then progress to an intermediate class where they are introduced to a more advanced programme before reaching the top group, and eventually returning to their homes. In Auckland there are also several adjustment classes to allow a selected number of children to receive special individual attention daily. But the whole problem in New Zealand, according to a member of the staff of the psychological service in Auckland, requires not only the placement of children in the residential school and adjustment classes, but also a wider extension of therapy services than existing staff can supply.