title: Early adolescent deaf boys: a biopsychosocial approach.
abstract: In this chapter I have reviewed observations from clinical consultation and group-therapy work with early adolescent deaf boys in a special day school for the deaf. I have stressed how problems in communication exert a profound effect on the lives of these youngsters, both by virtue of their past and present influence on family life and by their ongoing effect on peer-group processes and academic adjustment. Primary consideration was given to certain "here and now" aspects of these boys' lives: ongoing problems in the social fabric of their home and school; narcissistic vulnerabilities and defenses against shame; and language-processing difficulties. The ways in which these problems undermine the supportive effect of the peer group at a time when it plays a particularly important role in development were reviewed. By emphasizing current sources of difficulty, using a biopsychosocial approach, I hope to point out fruitful opportunities for significant psychiatric intervention in a psychiatrically vulnerable population whose needs for professional service have never been met.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D003142:Communication; D003638:Deafness / Q000150:complications / Q000523:psychology*; D004645:Empathy; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D007859:Learning Disabilities / Q000150:complications; D008297:Male; D009289:Narcissism; D010379:Peer Group; D011615:Psychotherapy, Group; D012649:Self Concept; D012752:Shame; D012813:Sign Language