ABSTRACT
This chapter illustrates how the Affect Avoidance Theory can apply to a child with severe behavioral problems. The chapter presents the case history of a boy who was provoked into rage reactions by minor triggers in his home environment that reminded him of abusive events from his former caregiver. The chapter also discussed providing psychoeducation about affects as signals, the difference between feeling and acting, and how to avoid feeling contagion. The client must learn to hone in on the exact triggering moments that lead to a rageful reaction and moderate these with validation of the feelings, along with opportunities to evaluate the fears that are aroused in these interactions. A variety of tools such as drawing and imagery techniques can help teach children affect differentiation and tolerance. Children from traumatic backgrounds may have severe breaches in their ability to attach to their caregivers, and may have dissociated states, transitional identities, or voices that feel angry and disconnected from the family. Regulating affect involves finding a way for those dissociated self-states to forge a connection to the caregivers. When children engage in repetitive aggression despite these interventions, it is likely that they continue to perceive danger in their environment.
