The following sections of this BookRags Literature Study Guide is offprint from Gale's For Students Series: Presenting Analysis, Context, and Criticism on Commonly Studied Works: Introduction, Author Biography, Plot Summary, Characters, Themes, Style, Historical Context, Critical Overview, Criticism and Critical Essays, Media Adaptations, Topics for Further Study, Compare & Contrast, What Do I Read Next?, For Further Study, and Sources.
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The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Encyclopedia of Popular Fiction: "Social Concerns", "Thematic Overview", "Techniques", "Literary Precedents", "Key Questions", "Related Titles", "Adaptations", "Related Web Sites". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Guide to Literature for Young Adults: "About the Author", "Overview", "Setting", "Literary Qualities", "Social Sensitivity", "Topics for Discussion", "Ideas for Reports and Papers". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
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A tendency to resist complying with directions or suggestions.
Negativism is a behavior characterized by the tendency to resist direction from others, and the refusal to comply with requests. Negativism appears and wanes at various stages of a child's development. Active negativism, that is, behavior characterized by doing the opposite of what is being asked, is commonly encountered with young children. For example, a parent may ask a toddler to come away from the playground to return home; on hearing these instructions, the toddler demonstrates active negativism by running away.
Infant studies have revealed that negativism develops during the first year of life, and resurfaces during toddlerhood and again during adolescence. Negativism is used by adolescents as a way to assert their autonomy from their parents, and to control their own behavior. When negativism does not diminish, it becomes a characteristic of the individual's personality. Negativism is an aspect of one of the essential features of oppositional-defiant disorder, characterized by a pattern of behavior that is defiant, negativistic, and hostile toward authority figures. However, for the majority of children who display negativism, the behavior will pass with further development.
Baker, Lynne Rudder. Explaining Attitudes: A Practical Approach to the Mind. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1995.
Craighead, Linda W. Cognitive and Behavioral Interventions: An Empirical Approach to Mental Health Problems. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1994.
Eagly, Alice Hendrickson. The Psychology of Attitudes. Fort Worth, TX: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1993.
Miller, William R. Motivational Enhancement Therapy Manual. Rockville, MD: National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, 1995.
Solnit, Albert J., Peter B. Neubauer, Samuel Abrams, and A. Scott Dowling. The Psychoanalytic Study of the Child. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1994.
Belsky, Jay. "Infant Positive and Negative Emotionality: One Dimension or Two?" Developmental Psychology 32, March 1996, pp. 289-98.
Wenar, Charles. "On Negativism." Human Development 25, January-February 1982, pp. 1-23.
Touchpoints: The Brazelton Study, Volume 2: First Months Through One Year. New York: GoodTimes Home Video, 1992.
(One 45-minute videocassette.)