How To Improve Your Child’s Social Behavior

On many occasions, when parents come to seek help for their children it is because they have detected a certain problem in their behavior which is recurrent and they realize that they can not do it alone. It is common that, associated with this reason that leads them to consult, other associated areas appear on which to intervene, since they may be generating some discomfort for the child. This is the case of difficulties in social relations, which, although they are not usually the main reason for consultation, frequently appear in the background.

Factors that Influence Children's Relationship Difficulties

When we relate to others, one of the most important factors that appear is self-esteem. If we trust in ourselves, we can intervene in activities with other people without fear of feeling judged. The same goes for children, having a solid base of self-esteem and self-confidence will make it easier for them to intervene in games and activities with other classmates, and be able to enjoy it.

Assertiveness goes hand in hand with self-esteem, that is, the capacity to express what we want or need and to defend our rights without attacking or submitting to the will of other people, which is essential to establish satisfactory social relationships. Another aspect to consider is the capacity for empathy. Being able to recognize the emotional states of children, putting ourselves in their shoes and imagining how they can be feeling in a certain situation, will help us to proceed. If your child has difficulties in this area, he may have problems with others frequently and will perceive him unfavorably. In addition, this will lead him to suffer in certain situations, by failing to understand the motives of the others to do something determined.

What Can Parents Do?

Without a doubt, this is something that can be “trained”. Fathers and mothers can help their children put into words what can often seem obvious or even absurd. The important thing is to create a bond with the child so that he feels comfortable talking about his emotions and feelings, giving them space where they can express themselves helping them to understand and manage their behavior in social situations.

As for so many other things, fathers and mothers are reference models for boys and girls, and their way of relating socially will be decisive in terms of the learning model that is transmitted to their children, this means that if the parents do not give too much importance to social relationships in leisure time, possibly children will not consider it important either. It can also happen that parents do give importance but children have difficulties. This is where you have to take into account the aspects we talked about above.

It will be fundamental to be in contact with the teachers of the children since it is in the school where most hours of the day are and therefore if there are behavioral difficulties, it is normal that they appear there. But why do some children find it difficult to relate to others? Do the other children include him in the games or our son is the one who does not want to join, or is it that others leave him aside? If one of these two things happens, since when does it happen? You should do those questions in order to find answers to understand what is happening.

How, Where and with Whom

Sometimes, what happens is that most of the children in the classroom play a game that our son or daughter does not like, for example, if the child does not like football, he may be excluded. However, it is essential that you can respect his tastes and preferences, and look for other places where he can develop, share and feel comfortable with other children who like the same things.

Extracurricular activities sometimes represent good opportunities to be with a different group of children with which they have other things in common. In addition, many of them promote the capacity of social relationships and can contribute to improving areas such as self-esteem and self-confidence, for example, theater, dance, sports, etc.

Even so, and despite being able to reflect on the reasons that cause our son or daughter to have difficulties when it comes to relating and behaving, asking for advice with professionals in the children's area can be, without a doubt, a great help to be able to work all the aspects previously mentioned, together with the particulars of each boy or girl.