Over the 15 years I spent working with adolescent students who had emotional and /or behavioral disorders; the most common mental health diagnosis I encountered was conduct disorder. Students with conduct order are often very volatile and display continual antisocial misbehavior. Usually these students’ behavior involves: aggressive behavior towards others (may include animals); rule-breaking; theft; lying and/or manipulation and/or property destruction.
According the Minnesota Association for Children’s Mental Health website (www.macmh.org): “To receive a diagnosis of conduct disorder, a child or adolescent must have displayed 3 or more characteristic behaviors in the past 12 months. At least 1 of these behaviors must have been evident during the past 6 months.
Diagnosing conduct disorder can be a dilemma because children are constantly changing. This makes it difficult to discern whether the problem is persistent enough to warrant a diagnosis. In some cases, what appears to be conduct disorder may be a problem adjusting to acute or chronic stress. Many children with conduct disorder also have learning disabilities and about 1/3 are depressed. Many children stop exhibiting behavior problems when they are treated for depression.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services estimates that between 6 and 16 percent of males and 2 to 9 percent of females under age 18 have conduct disorder that ranges in severity from mild to severe.
The behaviors presented by a conduct disorder student, in a classroom setting, can be very challenging. They may include, but are not limited to:
Lack of empathy
Causing harm or threatening to cause harm to self and/or others
Continual rule-breaking
Lying to and/or manipulating staff and peers
Defiance and non-compliance
Bursts of rage
Destroying property (of self and/or others)
Theft
Needless to say, these students are also frequently removed from class, suspended and/or expelled. They are often involved in physical altercations and may bring weapons to school. Students with conduct disorder have difficulty with interpersonal relationships and may be abusive to boyfriends/girlfriends.
Because they are defiant, students with conduct disorder are often absent from school and have difficulty completing assignments.
If you have a student in class who has been diagnosed with conduct disorder, here are some ideas for assisting them:
Avoid giving ultimatums – use options instead.
Keep calm and logical during interactions and if the student’s behavior escalates. These students like power struggles and arguments.
Select materials that are relevant to the students’ lives. Although their skills may be at a lower level, they usually do not respond well to material they perceive as beneath them (age-wise). Look for “high-interest, low ability” materials.
Do not touch the students.
If the student is old enough to work, consider a work-experience program. Conduct disordered students often do well in school-to-work programs because they find earning money an incentive.
Develop a plan, ahead of time, as to what will be done if the student becomes rageful. Make sure parents, staff and the student are informed about who will be contacted and the order of the steps which will be taken to ensure the safety of the student and others.
Do not carry a “grudge’ against the student and be willing to start over with them. Conduct disorder students have true mental health issues and are often as overwhelmed and puzzled by their behaviors as those around them.
Embarrassment is a concern for all adolescents, but is multiplied in students experiencing conduct disorders. Modifications and adaptations should been accomplished with subtle non-intrusive methods to allow the student to maintain a sense of dignity and responsibility. Blatant, harsh criticisms of these students will perpetuate their fears of failure and feed into their cycles of anger and rage.
Conduct disorder students often work best in small group or one-on-one settings. They need a great deal of structure and clear expectations if they are to be successful. Therefore, it may be helpful, to get permission to speak with any mental health practitioners who are involved with the child. These professionals can help you gain a better understanding of the disorder, and work with you to develop effective interventions for the student in you classroom. In turn, you provide to the mental health professional beneficial insight into how the child acts in and academic setting, which can help the professional treat the child in a more holistic manner.
