Behavior, Student

Historically, research about the etiology of student behavior has focused on the promotion of positive behaviors and the remediation of negative ones. The federal government also addressed student behavior as part of the 1997 Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), an act that governs the provisions of special education. Three perspectives summarize the different points of view about student behavior: (1) disability, (2) deviance, and (3) alienation.

Professionals who support the disability perspective attend to medical-pathological conditions and profess that behaviors are devoid of individual control and responsibility. Medical professionals use psychiatric, psychological, and psychoneurological evaluations to treat behaviors in mental health settings. Strengths of the perspective include culture-free biases, normreferenced evaluations, and etiology emphases that lend to interventions. Weaknesses of the perspective include emphases on labels and exclusion of parents and nonmedical professionals.

Professionals who subscribe to the deviance perspective label behavior problems as contrary to socially accepted norms. The theory involves assessments of larger populations to develop checklists and rating scales that rule in or rule out individuals' consistent compliance with norms. Certain factions of society may differ in their confirmations of normal behavior, such as age-appropriate sexual expression. Overall, the concept of mental illness is not considered, since individuals may control their behaviors to the extent that they comply with social norms. Strengths of the perspective include the involvement of several professionals (e.g., educators and psychologists) and parents to address overt behaviors. Weaknesses of the perspective include the inability to change societal perspectives of behavior necessary to redefine “normal.” The problem is evident when certain nonconforming behaviors benefit individuals and society, such as Rosa Park's refusal to obey segregation.

Professionals who adhere to the alienation perspective accentuate individuals' self-actualization. They understand that individuals' behaviors result from frustrations with bureaucratic societies that promote wealth and power. Individuals who consider themselves “different” may experience separations from society that require mental health remediation. Strengths of the perspective include its humanistic approach that holds society accountable for its practices. Weaknesses of the perspective include an inevitable vicious cycle that emerges when citizens contribute to their societies, which, in turn, frustrate them.

Perspectives of behavior evolved into models—theories that drive research, treatment, and educational implications. The biological model accounts for four etiological origins of behavior to describe abnormalities. Genetic etiology links behavior with genetic markers and receives research attention among fraternal and maternal twins. Biomedical etiology links neurons and metabolic functions and receives research attention among individuals with manic-depressive disorders, schizophrenia, and certain cases of autism. Neurological etiology accounts for malfunctions in the nervous system and receives research attention among individuals with anxiety disorders and traumatic brain injuries. Developmental etiology links maltreatment and abuse at early stages of life with behaviors and receives research attention among youth in foster care. Treatment associated with the biological model occurs at medical centers (e.g., psychiatric hospitals), involves the administration of drugs and chemicals to alter the central nervous system, and is administered with little to no input from nonmedical personnel.

The cognitive model includes behaviorists who subscribe to deviance perspectives and examine cognitive processes of thoughts, ideas, and images. Behaviorists offer assistance at the onset of therapy but then place responsibility on individuals to change their deviant behaviors. A willingness to self-examine thoughts via introspection and to self-regulate related behaviors must occur in order for individuals to succeed with therapy. The cognitive-behavioral therapeutic interactions typically consist of four steps: discussion, modeling, practice, and feedback. Examples include problem-solving therapy, anger management, and social skills training. Students may practice and perfect their therapeutic training in school settings and allow school personnel to provide additional modeling and feedback.

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