The Link between Communication Skills and the Development of Problems in Children - Essay Example

The link between communication skills and the development of emotional and behavioural problems in children Emotional and language development are linked, as language and communication skills are central to a human being. Logically, communication problems are related to emotional and behavioural difficulties. There are different theories about how emotional and communication difficulties develop typically and how they might be linked. The term "language" has two dimensions: structural and pragmatic. Structural language skills encompass the sounds of language (phonology), vocabulary (semantics), grammar (syntax and morphosyntax), narrative discourse, and auditory verbal information processing. Pragmatic language skills include behaviours such as conversational or other communicative turn-taking, making good use of gestures and maintaining eye contact. As well as these specific aspects of language and communication, children must be able to both express their thoughts (expressive language) and understand those of others (receptive language) in both social and learning situations. As for the term "communication disorders", it includes a wide variety of problems in language, speech, and hearing. Speech and language impairments include articulation problems, voice disorders, fluency problems (such as stuttering), aphasia (difficulty in using words, usually as a result of a brain injury), and delays in speech and/or language (Cohen, 2001, p.134-78). As for the definitions of Emotional and Behavioral Disorder (EBD), there are several of them, but basically it refers to a condition in which behavioral or emotional responses of an individual are so different from his/her generally accepted, age appropriate, ethnic or cultural norms that they adversely affect performance in such areas as self care, social relationships, personal adjustment, academic progress, classroom behavior, or work adjustment (Forness and Knitzer, 1992, p.12-21). In the first five years of life, the evolution of communication can be divided into three periods. The first period begins at birth when infants communicate through their cries, gazes, vocalizations and early gestures. These early communicative behaviours are not intentional, but set the stage for later intentional communication. In the second period, from six to 18 months, infants' communicative engagement with adults becomes intentional. A major turning point is the appearance of joint attention, which involves infants coordinating visual attention with that of another person regarding objects and events. In the third period, from 18 months onward, language overtakes action as children's primary means of learning and communication. For instance, preschoolers can engage in conversations about emotions that take into account another's affective state, can use language for self-control and have the capacity to negotiate verbally (Owens, Metz and Haas, 2000, p.14-19). There are various theories of language development, however, most of them stress the importance of interaction with a significant person who helps the infant express his or her needs and feelings: children will not learn to interact verbally if there is no one who is able to interact with them responsively. One of the theories, attachment theory, describes how a reciprocal relationship with a significant adult is important for emotional development: securely attached children use more complex language than maltreated children. It is important for both emotional and communication development (Cross, 2004, p.17-34). An important question is brought up here: can disruptions in language development affect emotional development, and vice versa: can emotional problems cause language impairment On the one hand, there is good evidence to suggest that communication difficulties can lead on to emotional, behavioural and psychiatric problems. Difficulties in understanding language seems to be a high risk factor for the development of psychiatric problems, but expressive difficulties also seem to be responsible for behavioural problems. On the other hand, there is less evidence for emotional and behavioural problems being the cause of communication difficulties. Selective mutism, where a young person is only able to communicate in some situations, is a possible candidate, though rather disputable. Autism and schizophrenia are 'psychiatric' conditions where communication deficits are part of the diagnosis, but it is unclear whether they cause communication problems or whether communication difficulties are simply an integral part of these conditions. In either case, it is unlikely that these account for much of the association between emotional and behavioural difficulties and communication difficulties. Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is very closely associated with communication difficulties, especially in children who have problems with the social use of language. It may be that some kinds of communication difficulties and ADHD are both due to the executive function deficits; that is, deficiencies in the cognitive skills necessary for self-regulation, which include the development of 'private speech'. Again, although there is a close association between communication difficulties and ADHD, there is insufficient evidence to say that ADHD 'causes' communication problems. There are many factors which could lead to both emotional and behavioural difficulties and communication problems. Adverse environmental factors, such as perinatal complications, psychosocial stress and low socio-economic status, can affect language and emotional development. Interaction and in particular, attachment difficulties, also seem to be implicated in atypical emotional and language development. The effects of child abuse also appear to be devastating to both emotional and language development, but it is not always clear whether the abuse or the developmental impairments come first. Language development can also affect emotional development because language is necessary to describe and regulate emotions and is therefore an important part of emotional intelligence. Learning difficulties can lead both to emotional and communication problems. However, they cannot explain the association between the two, since not all children with emotional and behavioural problems and communication difficulties have learning problems as well. Thus, the causation of emotional, behavioural and language difficulties is likely to be multifactorial. The consequences of such complex causation are that many children suffer manifold emotional, behavioural and learning difficulties which need to be addressed with reference to each other (Cross, 2004, p.35-59). Although there are strong links between language and emotional development, there is a body of literature deriving from work in child psychiatry which suggests that there may be large numbers of children with emotional and behavioural problems who have unsuspected speech and language difficulties. There are various definitions of language impairment. It seems that approximately 6 per cent of the general child population have communication difficulties. Although there seems to be a decline in communication difficulties as children reach school age, there is also evidence for some difficulties persisting into adolescence, and we cannot be sure which of these are likely to persist. The main effect of communication difficulties for a child or young person is an increase in anxiety and frustration, which can manifest itself in unacceptable behaviour. If, as is often the case, a child or young person's communication difficulties affect his or her social use of language, this has a deleterious effect on social interactions and social problem-solving, which can further exacerbate emotional and behavioural problems (Cross, 2004, p.61-77). Thus, summing up, one could conclude that children and young people with emotional and behavioural difficulties are far more likely to have communication problems than their peers. When children have difficulty understanding others and expressing themselves, it is not surprising that emotional and behavioural problems follow. Conversely, a relatively large proportion of school-aged children who have psychosocial and emotional disorders often have problems with language and communication. It can be difficult to separate psychosocial and emotional problems from problems with language and communication. Children with language impairments have difficulty entering into peer group conversations and are then excluded, which gives them less opportunity to learn and practice the social skills they need for peer interaction. Failure to identify and treat such problems can have serious consequences. Bibliography 1.Cohen, NJ. (2001) Language impairment and psychopathology in infants, children, and adolescents. Thousand Oaks, Calif: Sage. 2.Cross, M. (2004) Children with Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties and Communication Problems: There Is Always a Reason. London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers. 3.Forness, S. R. and Knitzer, J. (1992). A new proposed definition and terminology to replace serious emotional disturbance' in individuals with disabilities education act. School Psychology Review, 21, p.12-21. 4.Owens, R.E., Metz, D.E., & Haas, A. (2000). Introduction to communication disorders. Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon. Read More