Childhood psychopathy is a mental health problem that affects thousands of boys and girls around the world. In general terms, these infants present a marked lack of empathy and disinterest with respect to the environment that surrounds them. In this sense, understanding the reasons that lead a child to have behaviors that are not socially accepted It is important to guarantee an early detection of the problem and evaluate ways of intervention possible. The actions of children that harm other people who do not show feelings of regret and / or ideas of compensating the damage caused have generated the interest of many researchers who have devoted themselves to the theme.
In this Psychology-Online article, we will talk about the child psychopathy: symptoms, causes and treatment.
Childhood psychopathy is a mental health disorder It can manifest during childhood. In general terms, child psychopathy consists of repetitive patterns of antisocial behaviors Commanded by manipulation and lack of empathy in interpersonal relationships. Although there is no clear definition of the problem, it is possible to place child psychopathy within the antisocial personality disorder that the DSM-V addresses.
Next, we will see the diagnostic criteria to arrive at a clinical picture:
- Confidence of norms.
- Intention to dominate a situation for personal benefit and the harm of others.
- Impulsiveness.
- Lack of guilt.
- Deterioration of social, work and family relationships.
- The alterations cannot be explained by the ingestion of medications and/or toxic substances.
It should be noted that this diagnosis is made after 15 years of age. However, they share some features with childhood psychopathy.
The manifestations of childhood psychopathy can be detected by observing behaviors, emotions, and interpreting thoughts. In this section, we will discuss the main symptoms:
- Lack of empathy.
- manipulations
- feelings of inferiority
- Impulsiveness.
- Intermittent social relationships.
- Violent antisocial behaviors with people and animals.
- Low school performance.
- Lack of guilt.
There are several reasons that explain childhood psychopathy. Specifically, this clinical picture is determined by a sum of genetic, environmental and social factors that occur in the life of a boy or girl.
Below we show you the main causes of child psychopathy:
- Genetic factors: Genetic inheritance by parents diagnosed with this mental health disorder may predispose to suffer the same symptoms. It should be noted that there are alterations in the neuronal connections that occur in the central nervous system, which affects the processing of stimuli from abroad.
- Environmental factors: childhood traumatic experiences influence personality development. Here it can be mentioned that sexual abuse, verbal and/or physical violence, loss of loved ones loved ones, prohibitions and other difficult situations to overcome play a fundamental role for the person.
- Social factors: the environment that surrounds the person can influence the strengthening of antisocial behaviors. This can be fostered by hostile acts of a group of people, robberies, violence, among others.
Childhood psychopathy can be addressed through various approaches that have proven to be highly efficient and effective in these cases. Child psychopathy treatments include:
psychological therapy
First, psychological therapy helps the child regulate her impulses, control her actions and establish new habits in the relationship with other people. Likewise, work on communication and empathy is important in order to promote socially accepted behaviors.
Broadly, the best-known brief approach is called cognitive behavioral therapy, which addresses emotions, thoughts and behaviors of the person through the implementation of strategies that allow a better quality of life. On the other hand, psychoanalysis is the most effective long-term therapy since it tries to locate the origin of the child's conflicts in order to face life situations in a more pleasant way.
psychiatric medication
On the other hand, there are medications that regulate anxiety and impulsivity through changes in brain function. However, this indication should always be supervised by a mental health professional.
In the following article you will find information about the different Types of psychotropic drugs.
Establishing clear limits
Childhood psychopathy must be addressed from the implementation of clear prohibitionsthat have direct consequences in the child's actions. This is useful for the person to be aware of her thoughts and to evaluate other modalities.
Understand the meaning of actions
Sometimes children try to express their internal conflicts through actions that are harmful to the environment. However, this does not mean that you have a specific desire to do it, but that they are trying to get the attention of relatives. For this reason, speaking deeply and inquire into the reasons It is essential to avoid problems in the future.
This article is merely informative, at Psychology-Online we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.
If you want to read more articles similar to Childhood psychopathy: symptoms, causes and treatment, we recommend that you enter our category of Clinical psychology.
