Author Name: Russell A. Barclay Christine M.B.

This book is the product of over 30 years of clinical experience and research on the nature, causes, and treatment of disruptive behavior in children, particularly those related to impulsivity, hyperactivity, inattention, and defiance. I also draw on thousands of published scientific studies focusing on these behavioral problems and their treatment methods as described in psychiatry and psychology textbooks. The child behavior management approach described in this book is one of the most widely used and effective approaches in North America for managing disruptive and defiance behavior in children. I have presented this program to over 10,000 mental health professionals over the past three decades through seminars and workshops, so that they can introduce it to the families they serve in their clinical practices. I have also presented this program to over 2,500 families in my clinical practice. These research and clinical experiences have led me to write a guidebook for clinicians that describes the nature of disruptive and rebellious child behavior, assesses it, and describes a 10-step program to help parents of these children more effectively reduce the problems that plague their relationships with their children. Although these sources of information are of great benefit to professionals who provide clinical consultations for children with aggressive, disruptive, and impulsive behavior, they do not give parents direct permission to use the information contained in this program and these sources. There is a growing feeling that writing a book specifically for parents may help them meet their urgent need for direct, useful, and meaningful information. The eight-step program described in the first edition of this book is a modified version of the original ten-step program and tells parents how to overcome the obstacles they encounter in dealing with their children and make them kind, cooperative, and more compassionate. The second edition expands on the program, providing it with information derived from more than 14 years of subsequent research on rebellious child behavior. Based on my own experience as an author of scholarly research and professional textbooks, the publisher and I consulted during the initial discussions regarding the first edition to ask Christine Benton to co-author the book. Chris helped me make the scientific information I had gathered about ADHD more practical, useful, and effective for a general readership. She agreed, and the first edition of this book was the result of our direct and joint collaboration. As with this second edition, we ensured that the contents would remain accessible and effective for parents. As before, if you find this work not only easy to read and understand, but also works, the credit goes to Chris. If you find the presentation and content of the program challenging, it is mine alone to blame.