Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD), or social aggression, is defined as a pattern of disobedient, negativistic, and provocative opposition to authority figures. More commonly seen in boys than girls, ODD can be diagnosed in children as young as 3 years of age. ODD is defined by less severe behavior than a conduct disorder. One-third of children and adolescents seen in community-based clinics with psychiatric diagnoses are considered oppositional.
The contributory factors can be divided into five categories: biological, familial, socio cognitive or peer-related, psychosocial adversity and co-morbidity. The biological factors that are believed to be the cause are the aggressive behavior may be caused by alterations in the neurotransmitter activity of the brain. Youngsters diagnosed with ODD appear to differ from normal and clinical comparison samples of children in two ways: firstly they display low cortical arousal and they display low autonomic reactivity.
The assumption is that the low cortical arousal and reactivity responses diminish avoidance conditioning to socialization stimuli and fuels poor response to punishment. Influences on child development may be genetically linked, attributed to conflict in the family home or based on parent-child interactions. Researchers have documented that parents who have been diagnosed with antisocial personality disorder (APD) or exhibit the signs of this disorder are strongly and particularly linked back to ODD in early childhood and conduct disorder (CD) in late childhood and in the adolescent years.
Additionally, a parent's prior aggressive behavior (in childhood) has been shown to manifest itself in their child at the same age. Dysfunctional familial functioning including marital conflict, divorce and child abuse have been concerned in the onset and maintenance of antisocial behavior. Effects of matrimonial clash, divorce and its resentment appear to be mediated by the parent's lack of availability to and negativity to the child.
A history of abuse and family sadism in the home attributes to aggressive behavior in other settings as well.......
