BEHAVIOR AS COMMUNICATION
It are often very bewildering for folks when a young child uses behaviors like screaming, hitting and throwing objects to precise anger or frustration. In the heat of the instant , it's very hard for a parent to feel confident of the proper response. What will bring about the best behavior change? What might be a damaging response to a child’s tantrum?
Communication is that the process of expressing or exchanging ideas, thoughts or feelings to a different . Depending on the age or purpose of the intended message, the communicator may use speech, signs, print or behavior (to name a few) as a way of getting their message across to the listener. In the event that a toddler is using behavior to speak , it's important to ascertain if that's appropriate supported the child’s age.
Behavior as Communication For instance, children under the age of 18 months typically have less than 20 single words and may just be developing the ability to say “no” in protest. Any time a toddler can’t verbalize their frustration, they'll resort to other modes of communication, like hitting or screaming or pushing away. Another aspect to think about with a toddler under the age of 18 months is whether or not he or she has developed a transparent Theory of Mind (ToM), which is “the ability to attribute mental states to oneself and others and to understand that others have beliefs, desires, and intentions that are different from one’s own”. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theory_of_mind.
Certain skills, like imitation, pointing and joint attention are foundational to Theory of Mind and typically develop by 12 months aged . Recent research suggests that toddlers as young as 16 months could also be ready to differentiate between a reliable communication partner and one who is unpredictable. This might indicate a beginning awareness that another person has different mental states than one’s own. It is important to think about this emotional/mental aspect of development when considering behaviors with young children because it could have a deciding impact on how a parent would respond to the behavior.
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