Dealing with Temper Tantrums
No two children are the same. There are no universal disciplinary techniques that apply to all children. There are however, some general principles to keep in mind:
- tantrums are normal in young children
- tantrums are vehicles to teach valuable life long lessons
- children manifest tantrums most often:
a) when their wishes are not met
b) when they are tired or hungry
4. your appropriate response is critical and will determine if your child learns those valuable
lessons
5. your response should be determined by an analysis of the circumstances – what is your child
trying to achieve by the tantrums eg. attention seeking, expressing frustration or anger,
trying to avoid a responsibility, social control, reversing the “no” word, sick, fear, etc., etc.)
6. if the child is successful in achieving his/her “goal”, the tantrum was reinforced and the
probability of another tantrum has been increased
7. if the child is unsuccessful in achieving his / her “goal” the tantrum was NOT reinforced and
the probability of another tantrum has been reduced.
8. tantrum behaviour can often be traced directly to an adult’s pattern of giving in to the child’s
wishes as soon as the tantrum behaviour becomes “intolerable”.