Anger Management in Early Childhood

In early childhood, children feel anger, and express anger but are unable to understand the anger.

The pre-operation stage of cognitive development from the age of 3 to 7 years in children is majorly characterized by language development. Early childhood is predominantly consumed by egocentrism, where the child has not thus far developed concrete logic and is unable to take the viewpoints of others. At this stage, the children start with preschool and actively engross symbolic play and talk with peers, families, and educators.

Anger is a response to danger, a threat to self-esteem, frustration, rejection, and also a form of self- expression. Children in this stage are often ruled by impulse and engage in aggressive behavior. Anger is an emotion, but when anger exceeds uncontrollably is takes form into aggression leading to harmful behavior and physiological issues.

 Troublesome behavior can be seen in subtle ways like pouting, whining, and sulking at schools, homes and with friends and siblings.   

A study found that children who had aggression early in life were at risk of

1. School failure
2. Physical violence
3. Mental health issues
4. Adult unemployment

Management of Anger in early childhood

Role Play

Children at the pre-operational stage find joy in manipulating the environment and symbols. Role-playing acts of rage may help the child learn healthy ways of coping with anger.

Exercise

Exercise does not harm anybody and pumps up the body with happy hormones so it is crucial to let the child exercise and exhaust all of their aggression away.

De-escalate and Deep Breaths

The immediate response of an adult to an angered child is to calm the situation down before explaining anything to the child. Teach them to take deep breaths, as deep breaths help slow the child’s physiological symptoms and give them time to think.

Teach Problem Solving

Children in early childhood do not have concrete logical thinking, nevertheless, it is important to teach children to think of alternative options. Alternatives can be compared with the cognitive capacity of the children and help halt impulsive behavior.

Challenge Thinking

It is vital to challenge children’s thinking moreover, with the help of cues because they are resistant to other’s opinions. Cues make the child believe they came up with the idea themselves and feel confident in themselves and less aggressive. Cross questioning them with ‘why’ aids them to think of a reason for their behavior.

Show Affection

The child might feel strong emotions accompanied with rage like anxiousness, and even hate. Showing affection with light touching and hugs to regain control over the emotions and helps cool off the anger.

However, excitement in any childhood stage, adults should teach the child to express anger through words rather than in behavior.

If you feel that you are unable to help your child control his or her anger. Please consult with an experienced Psychologist.

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All images courtesy Pixabay