| attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) | A childhood disorder characterized by a persistent pattern of inattention and hyperactivity or impulsivity that far exceeds such behaviors observed in children at comparable levels of development.
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| autistic disorder | A disorder in which children's ability to communicate and interact socially is seriously impaired; children with autism have specific language deficiencies, demonstrate a need for sameness in their environment, and often engage in repetitive and stereotyped kinds of behaviors.
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| behavior therapy | A psychological form of treatment, often used in treating conduct disorders, that is based on such learning principles as reinforcement and social learning.
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| cognitive behavior therapy | A group therapy technique particularly useful in treating depression in adolescents. Therapeutic goals include reducing self-consciousness and feelings of being different and teaching strategies for dealing with depressive moods and for acquiring a more positive outlook and improving social interactions.
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| comorbidity | The co-occurrence of two or more problem behaviors.
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| conduct disorder | A disorder characterized by a repetitive and persistent pattern of behavior in which a young person violates the basic rights of others or major age-appropriate societal norms or rules.
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| criminal offense | Behavior that is illegal.
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| delinquency | Juvenile behavior in violation of the law.
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| depression in childhood | Like adult depression, a mood disorder often manifested in a depressed mood and loss of interest in familiar activities but also likely to be expressed as irritability and crankiness. Difficulty concentrating or focusing on tasks and concomitant drops in school grades are not uncommon, and children with depression often complain of physical problems such as headache.
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| developmental psychopathology | The investigation of the origins, course, changes, and continuities in disordered or maladaptive behavior over a person's life span.
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| diagnosis | The identification of a physical or mental disorder on the basis of symptoms and of knowledge of the cause or causes of the disorder and its common course. A diagnosis may also include information about effective forms of treatment.
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| diagnostic reliability | A measure of how often two or more clinicians arrive independently at the same diagnosis of a particular disorder.
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| etiology | In medicine and psychiatry, the cause or causes of a specific disorder.
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| learned helplessness | A kind of behavior that results from the belief that one is helpless to control the events in one's world.
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| obsessive self-stimulatory behavior | Behavior common in children with autism in which they engage in repetitive actions that seemingly have no purpose.
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| operant behavior therapy | A form of behavior therapy in which behavior is carefully monitored and consistently rewarded with such things as food.
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| overcontrolled disorders | A group of psychological disturbances in which a child appears overly controlled, withdrawing from others, lacking spontaneity, and generally appearing to be not a happy child.
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| pervasive developmental disorders | Childhood disorders characterized by gross deficits in many areas of cognitive, emotional, and social development that are linked with severe and pervasive impairment of social interaction and communication skills.
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| psychostimulant medications | Drugs, such as amphetamines and caffeine, that increase alertness and attention as well as psychomotor activity.
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| status offense | Illegal behavior in an underage offender.
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| substance abuse | The excessive use of legal or illegal drugs in such a way as to interfere seriously with one or more important areas of functioning in life: work, intimacy with another, or general interpersonal and social relationships.
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| time-out | Removing children from a situation or context in which they are acting inappropriately until they are able and ready to act appropriately.
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| undercontrolled disorders | A group of psychological disturbances in which a child appears to lack self-control and to act-out in a variety of ways, through such behaviors as noncompliance, disobedience, and aggression.
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