PREVENTION OF RISKY BEHAVIOR IN PRESCHOOL AGE CHILDREN

Abstract

In order to one day develop into responsible adults, full of potential, ready for quality education, employment, creating and strengthening friendships and emotional bonds and starting our own family, we go through early social, emotional and cognitive development, which created us foundations for our functioning and achievement in all areas of life. Our development is influenced by the environment, which consists of family, peers, educational institutions and community. They provide guidance and support, cultivating within us the capacity to withstand adversity, maintain strong mental health, and flourish. By fostering resilience and protective factors, they empower us to overcome challenges and avoid harmful influences that could impede our development and negatively impact the child's growth. These wrong ways manifest as behaviors (such as aggression, reticence , etc.) that express that something is wrong and that we need help. The role of adults and the community is to recognize these calls for help and intervene so that these pathways do not develop into bigger problems and prevent us from fully realizing ourselves as healthy and happy individuals. There are numerous reasons why children begin to adopt risky behavior patterns. The need for early detection of risk factors from the child's immediate environment, which may be the cause of risky behavior, becomes increasingly important, especially because children in whom risky behaviors are detected early are exposed to a risk that -will later be recognized as social incompetence. In order to prevent the occurrence of risky behaviors in children, it is necessary to act preventively. In this paper, the risky behaviors of children are defined, some of the risk factors that encourage risky behaviors are presented, and the importance of quality prevention is emphasized.