A groundbreaking approach to understanding and parenting children who frequently exhibit severe fits of temper and other intractable behaviours, from a distinguished clinician and pioneer in this field, now updated to include the most recent research.
Almost everyone knows an explosive child, one whose frequent, severe fits of temper leave his or her parents standing helpless in their fear, frustration, and guilt. Most of these parents have tried everything—reasoning, behaviour modification, therapy, medication—but to no avail. They wonder if their child is deviant or just plain bad.
Dr. Ross Greene has worked with thousands of explosive children, and he has good news: these kids aren't bad, and neither are their parents. Rather, explosive children suffer from a physiological deficiency in frustration tolerance and flexibility. Throughout this compassionate book, Dr. Greene demonstrates why traditional treatments don't work for these kids and offers a new conceptual framework for understanding their behaviour, along with new language to describe it. He explains the latest neuroscience findings about the importance of flexibility, and, most important, he shows parents specific, practical ways they can recognize the signs of an impending explosion, defuse tension, and reduce frustration levels for the entire family.
For parents, psychologists, educators and ADHD groups.
In addition to the scientific foundation of the book, Greene addresses parents in practical ways that will help show results in difficult children and their effect on families.
Outline Flexibility and tolerance are learned skills, as any parent knows if they've seen an irascible 2-year-old grow into a pleasant, thoughtful, and considerate older child. Unfortunately, for reasons that are poorly understood, a few children don't "get" this part of socialization. Years after toddler tantrums should have become an unpleasant memory, a few unlucky parents find themselves battling with sudden, inexplicable, disturbingly violent rages--along with crushing guilt about what they "did wrong." Medical experts haven't helped much: the flurry of acronyms and labels (Tourette's, ADHD, ADD, etc.) seems to proffer new discoveries about the causes of such explosions, when in fact the only new development is alternative vocabulary to describe the effects. Ross Greene, a pediatric psychologist who also teaches at Harvard Medical School, makes a bold and humane attempt in this book to cut through the blather and speak directly to the (usually desperate) parents of explosive children. His text is long and serious, and has the advantage of covering an enormous amount of ground with nuance, detail, and sympathy, but also perhaps the disadvantage that only those parents who are not chronically tired and time-deprived are likely to get through the entire book. Quoted dialogue from actual sessions with parents and children is interspersed with analysis that is always oriented toward understanding the origins of "meltdowns" and developing workable strategies for avoidance. Although pharmacological treatment is not the book's focus, there is a chapter on drug therapies. --Richard Farr
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The Explosive Child: A New Approach for Understanding and Parenting Easily Frustrated, Chronically Inflexible Children
So far for us, this has been a great learning experience. But it is far from over. We are learning to communicate better and more effectively for all of our benefits. We aim to have a more loving and peaceful home with the help of this book.
An excellent book for parents of all children Apr 28, 2008
A must for all educators, professionals and parents who either have or work with children. Gives an overview of the varied assortment of issues many children have to deal with, and guides the reader in a clear and concise fashion in how to deal with a "short-tempered" child.
Great book, needs more practical advice Mar 21, 2008
This book opened up a new world of possibilities for me and my son. I discovered that there is a description for his behavior and that it has little to do with normal parenting techniques. Focusing on his problems as a type of learning or processing disorder has changed my focus from discipline/limit setting to training. We've already had some success in reducing the number of explosions and decreasing their length and intensity.
Excellent Book for Children with Anger Challenges Mar 6, 2008
I am a child clinical psychologist in private practice. I regularly work with children who have difficulty controlling emotions. They get frustrated and react in an angry way. Or, they may be told to do something they do not want to do and physically act out. In our training as psychologists we are taught that early temperament plays a huge part in how we interact with the world. Some of us are born pretty mellow. Others of us are more emotionally reactive. Those of us who are more emotionally reactive need to learn skills to manage our emotions in an effective manner. Many parents I meet react to emotional outbursts in a punitive fashion. However, this approach rarely works. Ross Greene, PhD presents an approach that is effective. The foundations of this approach are well supported by research. I consistently recommend this book to my parents in need. I have about 5 books that I recommend on a consistent basis and this is one of them. I am sure you will not be disappointed.
Steve Curtis, Ph.D., author of Understanding Your Child's Puzzling Behavior
Understanding Your Child's Puzzling Behavior: A Guide for Parents of Children with Behavioral, Social, and Learning Challenges
THE EXPLOSIVE CHILD Mar 3, 2008
Gave insight for strategic solutions for building self confidence in my son. The "role play" used in the book gave insight from my sons perspective on how he perceives the situation. Very helpful.
