Disinhibited Social Engagement Disorder

Disinhibited social engagement disorder (DSED) involves socially aberrant behaviors such as wandering away from a care-giver, willingness to depart with a stranger, and engagement in overly familiar physical behaviors (e.g., seeking physical contact such as a hug) with unfamiliar adults Disinhibited social engagement disorder is characterized by difficulty forming emotional bonds with others and a lack of inhibition around strangers. The condition tends to occur in young children who have experienced neglect, trauma, abandonment, or abuse. Diagnostic Criteria
A. A pattern of behavior in which a child actively approaches and interacts with unfamiliar adults and exhibits at least two of the following:

  1. Reduced or absent reticence in approaching and interacting with unfamiliar adults.
  2. Overly familiar verbal or physical behavior (that is not consistent with culturally sanctioned and with age-appropriate social boundaries).
  3. Diminished or absent checking back with adult caregiver after venturing away, even in unfamiliar settings.
  4. Willingness to go off with an unfamiliar adult with minimal or no hesitation.

B. The behaviors in Criterion A are not limited to impulsivity (as in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder) but include socially disinhibited behavior.

C. The child has experienced a pattern of extremes of insufficient care as evidenced by at least one of the following:

  1. Social neglect or deprivation in the form of persistent lack of having basic emotional needs for comfort, stimulation, and affection met by caregiving adults.
  2. Repeated changes of primary caregivers that limit opportunities to form stable attachments (e.g., frequent changes in foster care).
  3. Rearing in unusual settings that severely limit opportunities to form selective attachments (e.g., institutions with high child-to-caregiver ratios)

D. The care in Criterion C is presumed to be responsible for the disturbed behavior in Criterion A (e.g., the disturbances in Criterion A began following the pathogenic care in Criterion C).

E. The child has a developmental age of at least 9 months.

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Pub: 27 Mar 2024 00:56 UTC

Edit: 02 Jun 2024 15:45 UTC

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