Oppositional+Defiant+Disorder

=Oppositional Defiant Disorder=

//What is it? //
// In the ////Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, Fourth Edition // (//DSM IV //), the American Psychiatric Association defines Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) as a ‘recurrent pattern of negativistic, defiant, disobedient, and hostile behaviour toward authority figures’. Authority figures in this sense can include teachers, parents, or any caregiver that seeks to assert a level of authority over the student. The student responds to this attempted exercise in authority through a number of different ways. A few examples of what this may look like include: It should be noted that these are behaviours one will observe in any regular student, however in an ODD student one can expect to see it to alarming extremes for any minor perceived offence.
 * Frequent temper tantrums
 * Excessive arguing with adults
 * Often questioning rules
 * Active defiance and refusal to comply with adult requests and rules
 * Deliberate attempts to annoy or upset people
 * Blaming others for his or her mistakes or misbehaviour
 * Often being touchy or easily annoyed by others
 * Frequent anger and resentment
 * Mean and hateful talking when upset
 * Spiteful attitude and revenge seeking (American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry)

Diagnosis
Evaluating a student with ODD can be difficult. The diagnosis usually occurs in primary school, however a diagnosed child will usually have displayed a history of symptoms throughout primary school (Sutton-Hamilton, S., & Armando, J., 2008) A student will only have met the criteria for having ODD if they demonstrate at least 4of the above behaviours, and if that behaviour occurs more frequently in the particular students than other students of the same age (Pataki, C., 2008). The student must also have been displaying these behaviours consistently over a period of 6 months or longer, and is not occurring alongside a psychotic break or other such cognitive occurrences. It may be important to know how to diagnose a student with ODD in a classroom environment, as that will allow the teacher to not only liaise with the parents about seeking an official diagnoses, but also to understand the students’ behaviour and approach tasks in a way that is less likely to lead to a student outburst.

Classroom Behavioural Strategies
Firstly, do not take the defiance personally (Forehand, R., McMahon, R., 2003). It is important for at least one party in the situation to have a clear and level head. It is important to remember that a student with ODD acts volatile to attempts to assert authority over them, so often it will require a deft touch rather than a bludgeoning of your will over theirs. These students strangely enough responded better to a rule-centred classroom approach rather than a teacher-authority-centred one (Students FIRST Project, 2011). In a rule centred classroom approach neither the teacher or the student has the final say in what occurs, but rather a solid and static set of rules, which reduced the teacher/student power struggle. The teacher can ask the student “what do the rules say about what you are doing right now?” instead of bluntly demanding the student to stop. A student with ODD will also benefit from the Self-monitoring strategy, as it places the responsibility with the student themselves to improve their own behaviour (Students FIRST Project, 2011). Behavioural consequences should also be logical, and designed to teach rather than punish (Students FIRST Project, 2011). For example if a student trashes someone’s lunch, a logical solution would be for the student with ODD to provide them with lunch the next day rather than to do something like clean the playground. Provide students with a choice, for example “You can either stop what you’re doing, or we can contact the principal.”

References: American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, //Facts For Families; Children with Oppositional Defiant Disorder,// [], Retrieved 13 July 2011 Forehand, R., McMahon, R., (2003) //Helping the Non-Compliant Child: Family Based Treatment for Oppositional Behavior //, New York, NY: Guilford Press Pataki, C.,(2008) //Defining Oppositional Defiant Disorder//, [], retrieved 13 July 2011 Students FIRST Project, (2011)// School and Classroom Strategies: Oppositional Defiant Disorder, [], // Retrieved 13 July 2011, Sutton-Hamilton, S., & Armando, J., (2008) Oppositional Defiant Disorder, //Am Fam Physician,// Vol. 78, no. 7, p861-866