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Adhd : Alternative Approaches For Disruptive Behavior Essay

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ADHD: Alternative Approaches to Disruptive Behavior Conrad Landis Middle Tennessee State University This review intends to shed light on the potential overdiagnosis, over medicalization, and various behavior modification approaches to ADHD. Emphasis is placed on the impact of assessment by physicians as well as mindfulness to the idea of doing no harm. Evidence shows that behavior therapy is recommended as the first line of defense thus supporting the theory that disruptive behavior can be effectively treated when utilizing appropriate parent/child development strategies. ADHD: Alternative Approaches to Disruptive Behavior Controversy continues to surround a disorder which tends to classify vast numbers of unruly children as abnormal. It is officially recognized as Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD) in the fifth publication of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). The National Institute of Health (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, n.d.) states, “For a person to receive a diagnosis of ADHD, the symptoms of inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity must be chronic or long-lasting, impair the person’s functioning, and cause the person to fall behind normal development for his or her age.” Although this statement attempts to define criteria necessary for a possible diagnosis, much is left to be questioned about the nature of assessment, prescription, and potential behavior modification strategies.

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