ence. Such behaviors are probably the result of frustration and anger. Defiance, oppositionalism, and temper tantrums are often used by children 18 months to 3 years of age who feel frustrated by their conflicting desires to be in control of their environment on the one hand and who want to be taken care of and pampered in a developmentally regressive way on the other.
Oppositional defiant disorder is differentiated from conduct disorder, which it resembles. Symptoms of oppositional defiant disorder can resemble "normal" problem behaviors, but the symptoms are differentiated from normal preschool or other behavioral problems if they occur at a rate and intensity considered atypical for the child's age group or if they persist through a later stage than for most children. These symptoms consist of overt or confrontative problem behaviors. Oppositional defiant disorder has been described in the literature (Diagnostic Manual of Mental Disorders [DSM-III]) as a fairly mild condition characterized by disobedient, negativistic, and provocative opposition to authority figures. The diagnosis was specified if the behavior of the child violated maj
...