Characteristics of Emotional & Behavioral Disabilities

The term "emotional behavioral disorder," or EBD, came into use in 2001. The broad category of EBDs is used mostly in educational settings for children and adolescents. A child or teenager must exhibit certain behaviors as described by the "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders" for a diagnosis of EBD. EBD is sometimes referred to as a disability rather than a disorder.

General Characteristics

• Students characterized as having EDB generally exhibit social, emotional or behavioral functioning that departs from accepted, age-appropriate, ethnic or cultural norms. The behavior must be chronic and severe, adversely affecting the child's studies, relationships, skills and self-care. A student must regularly show at least one of these behaviors for their behavior to be diagnosed as EDB. The behavior is always observed and documented for a diagnosis and occurs both at school and at least one other environment.

Criteria for Emotional Behavioral Disorder

• Characteristics of EBD include six criteria: (1) the student has an inability to establish or maintain satisfactory relationships with peers or adults; (2) the student has a general mood of unhappiness; (3) the student demonstrates inappropriate behavior under ordinary circumstances; (4) the student has repeated difficulty coping with learning; (5) the student has physical symptoms or fears associated with personal or school problems; and (6) the student has difficulty accepting personal responsibility or accountability. A student must exhibit at least four of to be considered as having EBD.

Qualifying Behavior

• For any four of the six criteria, the student must also meet five additional qualifiers: (1) the behavior is significantly different in degree from applicable normative data; (2) the behavior negatively affects educational behavior in one or more areas; (3) the behavior is not a response to stress in the student's environment; (4) the behavior persists after intervention; and (5) the behavior persists in multiple environments.

Other Characteristics

• EBD students are not generally brighter than normal and acting out from boredom. Many EBD students score in the lower end on standardized tests. Some score as low as to be considered developmentally disabled. EDB students have a higher rate of absenteeism than average, a higher rate of dropping out of high school than all students with disabilities and a lower rate of employment following dropping out. Some EBD students are withdrawn, and their behavior can go without notice since they are not disruptive within a classroom.