Behaviour management within the context of family can be difficult to approach, particularly if you haven’t had to address concerns of behaviour management before. Whether this is managing the behaviour of a family member, managing the behaviour of your children, or supporting your partner in learning to manage your children’s behaviour – these are all things that a professional can support you and your family with.
It is important to check on your child’s general health and well-being if their behaviour has changed suddenly. Whilst some challenging behaviours, such as tantrums, are simply a normal phase of development, if you are finding that managing your child’s behaviour is increasingly difficult and you are struggling, seek support from a psychologist. The wealth of information and recommendations on behaviour management can be confusing, and sometimes even conflicting. It is important to be aware that not every behaviour management strategy will fix everything or work for every family. Each and every family is unique in the techniques that will assist them, and you will most likely need multiple strategies in combination. Difficult or challenging behaviours are often the result of multiple factors, such as the interplay between the behaviour of parents and children, stress within the context of the home or school, and an inability to communicate emotions effectively or in a socially appropriate way.
The difficult or challenging behaviour of any one family member can also have an impact on other family members. For siblings, this can mean feeling that less time is devoted to them in comparison to their siblings, or that their voice within the family is not heard. Whilst concerns surrounding behaviour management often relates to children or teenagers, behaviour management is a broad term that encapsulates any problems in regulating behaviour. Therefore, you may feel that you are struggling to manage your own behaviour, and this is impacting your family, or feel concerned that another family member is struggling to manage their behaviour.
The clinicians at VCPS specialise in behaviour management with techniques such as:
- Open communication which involves talking through concerns in a setting in a safe environment
- Making a scheduled routine that provides you and your family with a system that works best for all family members
- Teaching positive affection and attention that encourage all in the family to feel valued and loved
- Sharing tasks and making sure all jobs are divided evenly
- Preferred reactions and discussing how you would like everyone to respond to difficult situations
If you feel that you or your family needs assistance in behaviour management contact VCPS.
