Emotional and Behavioral Disability (EBD)

Definition and Classification

According to the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA), Emotional and Behavioral

Disability is defined as a condition exhibiting one or more of the following characteristics over a

long period of time and to a marked degree that adversely affects a child’s educational

performance (IDEA, 2004)

Characteristics

Characteristics of emotional and behavioral student can vary. Some characteristics that

can be seen are withdrawn from peers, behaviors that are antisocial, lack of pleasure in daily

activities, headaches, difficulty concentrating, difficulty remaining still, trouble controlling

moods, fatigue, and difficulty with self-control just to name a few. This are some characteristics

of emotional and behavioral disabilities, but the list does include more

Causes

There are many factors that can contribute to the cause of emotional and behavioral

disability. Some causes are developmental, biological, learned behavior, and environment

related. When it comes to biological causes this can be because of chemical imbalance,

especially in teens. Another biological cause are brain injury, illness, or psychological reasons.

Home life can cause emotional and behavior disability. Stress, lack of structure, violence, and

abuse can all be causes of emotional and behavior disability.