Cause and effect? - Emotional Development

A principle of (healing) pedagogy is, pick up the people where them stands. This means in the educational process as well as in the preparation of explanatory models to take into account the respective individual stage of development.

In the field of cognitive and psychomotor development, this usually succeeds very well. So you would certainly not on the idea of ​​a child who has not yet learned the letters to demand the reading of a daily newspaper. Someone, in whom a paralysis of the legs is present, it will not work out climbing the stairs.

Is quite different (unfortunately!) still in the field of socio-emotional development of. By default or misjudgements occur in this area repeatedly to excessive demands. Too little, this is disregarded still (even among experts). With the (technically correct!) averting ups for adults with intellectual disabilities as "he is on the level of development of a 6-year-old", taking into account the age-appropriate needs and dignity as well as the paradigm change in special education towards self-determination and autonomy, locked you partially the views of present facts.

It has long been that people go through with cognitive impairment, the same stages of development, just like everyone else. However, this development extends from often slower, delayed or incomplete.

We know also that this development often runs disharmonious. This means that a person can have a very different level of development in the various fields of personality with such impairments.

This has consequences for both the derivation of explanatory models for behavioral abnormalities, as well as for educational support. So has an adult   with 30 years of course the needs of a 30-year, the right to dignity and appropriate response. The cognitive "mental age" perhaps equivalent to a 10-year-old and must be taken into account in the monitoring and assistance. If the socio-emotional development of the phase of a 4-year corresponds to and is stopped there, this has a major impact on the necessary relationship formation   and the possible requirements, for example, a crisis management.

An example will clarify this: So you did not come (hopefully) the idea of ​​a 3 year old child who screams in despair because maybe his toy broke or cannot be found, to his room to send the prompt "If you're have calmed down, you can come out. " Intuitively, we know as a parent that this child as the current crisis cannot cope. Rather, it will sympathetically hugged, comforted. We know this just breaks a complete world for the child together and jointly - in the emotional unity with the caregiver - is to overcome this crisis in a position of this child. In a 12/13-year or even an adult often lack this understanding. The behavior shown is classed as a non-conformist, as "challenging behavior" declared, although he also currently has no other way to overcome the crisis because of its level of development.

Although already BARBARA SENCKEL 1994 developed a concept for the "development-friendly design relationship", this knowledge in special education and also in the evaluation of behavioral problems still seems to play a subordinate role. For several years, holding - obviously with similarly limited success - the concept of "development dynamic relationship therapy" by ANTON DOŠEN collection, which takes a similar approach.

Professionals who deal with it could prove that delays in the socio-emotional development of increasingly result in behavioral disorders and that these at an appropriate development are well influenced relationship offer.