What's wrong with our youth? Is it a psychosocial disorder? Is it the parents?

[cheerfulgreek]

Originally Posted by AGDee

I'm sorry, but the only thing "new" about a kid being beat up by a group of 6-8 bullies is that it gets videotaped and posted on the internet now. Do you seriously mean to tell me that nobody in your highschool ever got beat up by a group of students? It happens, they are kids. They didn't used to be made famous by it, they just used to get suspended.

People always freak out about the awful behavior of the generation or two below them when, in fact, the behavior really isn't a new phenomena. Parents never like their kids music (except me.. I tend to like the same music that my kids do), they always think kids dress in ridiculous fashions (ironically, the 14 y/o is wanting to wear the same stupid 80's fashions that I used to wear), etc.

True. Being bullied is nothing new, but being hostpitalized or almost killed over it is. Going around shooting other people like playing some violent video game is also insane. I think specific genes and the social environment interact to produce changes in the brain that influence emotional control and violence in kids. The V-Tech killer was taken off of his meds and look what happened. It's starts early, and if it isn't caught there's a possibility the kid could bacome a lifelong violent criminal. Antisocial behavior is what I think parents should start noticing. I think understanding whether a child is hyperemotional, or unemotional allows psychologist to identify high risk children early and to intervene with treatments before the child gets involved in serious crimes. I think things are different now because 20 years ago it was just general therapy and counselling, then waiting a few months to see if the kid got better. Yes, I do think parents are part of the problem but may not be the whole problem in some cases. In some cases improving parenting can be among the main tools of approaching antisocial behavior.