Child Development
In understanding the differences between childhood behaviors and adulthood behaviors in identifying problems is very important for those counselors seeking to find causes to problematic symptoms. The purpose of this report is to discuss the case study issues dealing with Maria, a 9-year-old Hispanic girl who is experiencing some behavior issues dealing with fear and anxiety. This report will offer an assessment and evaluation of Maria in determining the best way to approach and eventually solve this problem.
The text suggested that it was important to differentiate the issues of children and adults in a manner that is reasonable and understandable. There is, however, been a historical tendency to ignore this separation and treat children just like adults, perhaps misreading the situation and ultimately causing more confusion and harm. The authors wrote " the lack of attention to developmental variations in symptoms in the DSM and its applications is a common misconception in psychopathology, the developmental uniformity myth, which holds that disorders manifest the same no matter the age of the individual." By ignoring Maria's age and treating her like an adult would be a disservice to her and her mental health.
Shyness
The tendency...
Shyness may or may not be symptomatic of a disorder, just like happiness and sadness. The context of Maria's shyness needs to be more fully discussed and understood. Children are often exposed to many troubling things in their early life causing certain trauma. Shyness is one way of protecting themselves from the pains of the trauma.
Shyness can often come in stages or waves throughout the development of any single person's life. One can be shy in childhood and mature into a very socially balanced person. Children should not be expected to be well adjusted little adults, and what may cause a problem for a child may not have that same effect on an adult and vice versa. The importance of subjective interpretation of the individual details of any case, can help in eliminating confusing diagnosis and useless recommendations.
Shyness is also not a consistent emotion that is constantly displayed. While Maria maybe showing extreme symptoms to her parents, the descriptions of her problems were in fact described by her parents. The extreme tendency for parents to project their own self onto their children is massive problem in psychotherapy and child development. Too often ignorant parents do not…
