Children's Anxiety: A Contextual Approach

196 Pages·2008·1.05 MB·English

by  Peter Appleton

Children’s Anxiety
Children’s Anxiety: A Contextual Approach provides an introduction to
anxiety in children and teenagers, emphasising the importance of under-
standing the life circumstances of young people. The book provides an
up-to-date account of research on the developmental, familial and social
context of child anxiety, along with nine vibrant and detailed case studies
illustrating the ways in which young people can be helped to deal with
serious and complex anxiety problems.
In order to begin to understand complex anxiety within children’s life
circumstances Part 1 of the book provides the reader with a developmental
framework for thinking about children’s anxiety. Part 2 then presents nine
in-depthcase studies, organised notby thetype ornature of anxiety butby
the context within which problematic anxiety can occur. Part 3 acts a
summary of the key points emerging from the clinical case studies.
This book will be essential reading for those working and training in the
specialist field of child mental health, as well as community and hospital
professionals working with children and young people, including teachers,
doctors, social workers and nurses.
Peter Appleton is a chartered clinical psychologist in Cambridge, and
Honorary Consultant Clinical Psychologist at the Bedfordshire and Luton
Mental Health and Social Care Partnership NHS Trust.
Contributors: Peter Appleton, Helen Bell, Mandy Bryon, Andrew Edge,
Ayla Humphrey, Clare Jackson, Miriam Richardson, David Trickey, Clare
White.
In this outstanding volume Peter Appleton and his colleagues show that to
understandandtreatachild’sanxiety,itisessentialtotakeaccountofthesocial
context within which it occurs – whether it be war, domestic violence, child
abuse, out-of-home placement, parental separation, parental mental health
problems or childhood disability. This book presents a developmental and
systemic framework for conceptualizing children’s anxieties, and a fascinating
series of complex case studies written by experienced clinicians. Children’s
Anxietywillbeofinteresttoallmentalhealthprofessionalswhoprovideclinical
services to young people in clinical and educational settings.
Alan Carr, PhD, Professor Clinical Psychology,
University College Dublin, Ireland
This book provides a refreshing approach towards understanding the develop-
ment and maintenance of anxiety in children, with chapters organized around
individuals rather than types of disorder. Nine chapters, each by an expert
clinician,presentcasestudiesemphasizingdevelopmentalcontextandsetwithin
a range of theoretical and clinical orientations. The volume forms a coherent
whole, with three comprehensive introductory chapters and a final chapter of
unifying conclusions. An excellent, thought-provoking book, for research
workersaswellasclinicians,andindeedanyoneinterestedinthepsychologyof
anxiety.
Joan Stevenson-Hinde, Sc.D., Emeritus Senior Research Fellow,
University of Cambridge
Congratulations to Peter Appleton for writing, editing, and gathering state of
the art, in-depth information about contextual issues in the area of childhood
anxiety disorders. This book is an excellent resource for both clinicians and
academics. The variety of chapters across a broad range of childhood anxiety
disorders advances our knowledge not only about ‘what to do’ but ‘how to do
it’, and the important consideration of family doctors as well as preventative
strategies. I strongly recommend the use of this book in postgraduate clinical
training courses as well as a very usefultool for clinicians acrossmental health
disciplines.
Paula Barrett, PhD, Professor of Education, University of Queensland
Children’s Anxiety
A contextual approach
Edited by Peter Appleton
Firstpublished2008byRoutledge
27ChurchRoad,Hove,EastSussexBN32FA
SimultaneouslypublishedintheUSAandCanada
byRoutledge
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This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2008.
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Copyright(cid:216)2008selectionandeditorialmatter,PeterAppleton;individual
chapters,thecontributors
Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthisbookmaybereprintedorreproducedor
utilisedinanyformorbyanyelectronic,mechanical,orothermeans,now
knownorhereafterinvented,includingphotocopyingandrecording,orin
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BritishLibraryCataloguinginPublicationData
AcataloguerecordforthisbookisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary
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Children’sanxiety:acontextualapproach/editedbyPeterAppleton.
p.;cm.
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
ISBN978-0-415-41248-3(hardback) – ISBN978-0-415-45944-0(pbk.)
1.Anxietyinchildren.2.Anxietyinadolescence.I.Appleton,Peter(Peter
Leonard),1948-
[DNLM:1.AnxietyDisorders.2.Adolescent.3.Child.WM172C536
2008]
RJ506.A58C492008
618.92'8522–dc22
2007036601
ISBN978-0-415-41248-3(hbk)
ISBN978-0-415-45944-0(pbk)
ISBN 0-203-93206-4(cid:13)(cid:10) Master e-book ISBN
To Hilary, Catherine and Edward,
and to the memory of my parents
The lifelong adventure of gathering meaning from experience is in the
service of two overriding motivations: to make sense and to make relation-
ships. At the outset of postnatal life, the latter – relations with others,
critically with a mother figure – is most important, but sense making is
equally built into the human cognitive structure, and the two proceed in
tandem.
(Nelson, 2007, p. 14)
Contents
List of boxes, figures and table ix
Notes on contributors x
Preface xiii
Acknowledgements xv
PART 1 1
1 A developmental framework for understanding
children’s anxiety 3
PETERAPPLETON
2 Anxiety disorders in children and adolescents: a brief outline 40
PETERAPPLETON
3 Help for children experiencing severe and complex anxiety:
a brief outline 51
PETERAPPLETON
PART 2 65
4 Experiencing refugee status after previous trauma 67
DAVIDTRICKEY
5 Foster family change and transition for a looked-after child 81
MIRIAMRICHARDSONANDANDREWEDGE
6 Prevention of disabling fear and anxiety in a young child and
family: a case illustration following a traumatic accident 98
MANDYBRYON
viii Contents
7 Co-occurring aggressive behaviour and anxiety – at home and
school: developing a formulation 111
PETERAPPLETON
8 Anxiety and Asperger’s Disorder 121
AYLAHUMPHREY
9 Complex anxiety in an adolescent with a learning disability:
the girl who split off her stupidity 129
HELENBELL
10 Health anxieties within a family context 142
CLAREWHITEANDCLAREJACKSON
11 Panic disorder in the context of family change and transition 151
PETERAPPLETON
12 Gaining autonomy and independence, following earlier
experiences of maltreatment and peer victimisation 160
PETERAPPLETON
PART 3 167
13 Conclusion 169
PETERAPPLETON
Index 175
List of boxes, figures and table
Boxes
1.1 A developmental framework for children’s anxiety 6
1.2 Problematic anxiety as ‘high alert’ 13
1.3 The Ainsworth Strange Situation 15
3.1 Attachment, emotional security, and anxiety 55
Figures
4.1 Maintenance cycle of unhelpful beliefs 70
4.2 Maintenance cycle of avoidance 70
4.3 The processing pyramid 74
5.1 Jason’s birth and foster families 84
5.2 Circular connections between Jason’s anxiety, his behaviour
and adult stress 85
5.3 Circular connections between adults’ calmness and Jason’s
anxiety and behaviour 87
Table
13.1 Pseudonyms, by chapter number, context and age 170