A child is more susceptible to the influences around them than adults are. Children mould quickly to their environment and build appropriate behaviours and thinking patterns that are beneficial for them. Child psychology delves deep into the cause and motive of the developmental and psychological processes that is happening within each child, how these processes differ from adults and why there are differences in behaviour and thinking patterns from one child to the next.

Child psychology is incorporated through these sub-divisions:

• • Intellectual development– Many developmental disorders have physically or intellectually impaired the child but with the right therapy through repetitive practice, development in gross and fine motor skills and cognitive processes of thought, language and reasoning can be built with the right and effective strategy provided by the psychologist.

• • Behavioural development– Behavioural issues within children involve a lot of factors such as their environment, family dynamics, stress, genetics or brain disorders. Many behaviours could be seen as extreme leading to problematic situations. A psychologist analyzes such behaviours and helps unlearn and re-learn them into new habits and behaviours that are constructive rather than destructive.

• • Emotional intelligence– Children view the world differently not bound by societal pressures and hence their display of emotions are more vocal than that of adults whether in joy or sorrow. There are many children who also have difficulty in expressing their emotions. Both spectrums have a lot of factors such as environment, family dynamics or trauma. Developing strategies to help the child regulate or express his/her emotions in a healthy manner is the prime objective of the psychologist.

• • Social-skill development– One of the first relationships a child develops is with his/her parents and the quality of this relationship is a determining factor of all their other social interactions. Acquiring values, knowledge and skills that will enable each child to relate to others, maintain and develop friendships and positively contribute to their existing ecosystem is what they will be taught and trained in.

• Milestones– Milestones are a measuring system for the psychologist to analyze how far the child has come in developing his physical, emotional, cognitive or communicational and social skills.

“Understanding children, encouraging them, and guiding them plays a significant role in moulding their character.” – Dr. Rajendra Prasad Singh