Friday, May 9, 2008

Helping Parents Learn Parenting Skills to Redirect Challenging Behaviors

Parenting is one of the most important and difficult jobs any of us will have; however, few people receive any training in how to do it effectively. Most parents try one of two things, they do what their parents did or they do the opposite. Often, in frustration, when one extreme doesn't work, they try the other. Unfortunately, this approach to parenting is not only ineffective, it often creates more problems than it corrects. Inconsistent, permissive, and autocratic approaches all foster the challenging behaviors that parents and society are so concerned about.

By the time parents see us, they are usually at their wit's end. They are typically discouraged because they have tried everything they can think of, and defensive because they are afraid of being criticized. Helping professionals are often confronted with a twofold task: they not only have to teach parents effective discipline techniques, but also have to convince parents to actually use them. This can be an even more daunting task when working cross-culturally. Instead of focusing on what parents are doing wrong or what is wrong with their children, we will discuss how to help parents conceptualize what behaviors and qualities they want their children to develop and how to implement them. This workshop is geared to parenting children and adolescents. Workshop participants will:

• Obtain a model for understanding the motivation behind child and adolescent behavior (both the constructive and the disturbing) and learn how concerned adults can turn potential conflicts into opportunities for growth
• Help parents sidestep power struggles and develop strategies to prevent problems, intervene constructively, and foster appropriate behavior
• Understand why the common methods of reward, praise, and punishment don't work
• Develop alternatives to rewards and punishment that foster cooperation, self-reliance, resiliency, contribution to society, and self-confidence
• Identify and build on strengths and encourage a "growth mindset"

Workshop format is didactic and experiential and includes discussion as well as numerous case examples that can be used in clinical, home-based, residential, and educational settings.

Instructor

Amy Lew Ph.D., LMHC, LMFT has a private practice in individual, couples, and family therapy. She is known internationally for her work in teacher and parent education, as well as individual and couples therapy. Amy has co-authored five books in the Raising Kids Who Can series for therapists, parents, and teachers, as well as a book for couples, Cinderella, The Sequel. She began her career as a teacher and continues to work with schools and parents. Amy is currently a faculty member at The Family Institute of Cambridge.