{"id":189582,"date":"2016-11-18T10:48:46","date_gmt":"2016-11-18T15:48:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/?p=189582"},"modified":"2016-12-07T08:35:06","modified_gmt":"2016-12-07T13:35:06","slug":"how-thinking-about-behavior-differently-can-lead-to-happier-fasd-families-189582","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/how-thinking-about-behavior-differently-can-lead-to-happier-fasd-families-189582\/","title":{"rendered":"How thinking about behavior differently can lead to happier FASD families"},"content":{"rendered":"
A new study from the Ä¢¹½´«Ã½ sheds light on how parents and caregivers of children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) can best help their kids, and at the same time, maintain peace at home and at school.<\/p>\n
\u201cChildren with FASD often have significant behavior problems due to neurological damage,\u201d says Christie Petrenko, a research psychologist at the University\u2019s Mt. Hope Family Center<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n Petrenko and her colleagues found that parents of children with FASD\u00a0who attribute their child\u2019s misbehavior to their underlying disabilities\u2014rather than to willful disobedience\u2014tend to use pre-emptive strategies designed to help prevent undesirable behaviors.\u00a0These strategies are likely to be more effective than\u00a0incentive-based strategies, such as the use of consequences for misbehavior, given the\u00a0brain damage associated with FASD.<\/span><\/p>\n The study included 31\u00a0parents and caregivers of children with FASD\u00a0ages four through eight. Petrenko and her team\u00a0analyzed\u00a0data from standardized questionnaires and qualitative interviews that focused on\u00a0parenting practices.<\/p>\n