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What can be some of the causes/reasons that a child (in the 7-year-old range) to speak in a silly voice and in a silly way, more than an average child? I don't know how to be more specific by silly voice and in a silly way, but I mean that the child speaks with a different voice, usually mimicking a spoiled 2-year old in a way that is not the natural way that he usually speaks and It is pretty annoying and not very likable. It happens very often when the child communicates with grown ups. I am guessing it can be an attempt to draw attention or be liked more but I'm not a psychologist so I thought I'd ask. What are some of the causes of this type of behavior in children, and what are some of the cures for it? Is there a difference between causes in girls and boys? If you think I need to ask this question in Parenting SE, please let me know. thanks.

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    $\begingroup$ Welcome! Self-help questions are discouraged unfortunately. This is better suited for Parenting.SE. $\endgroup$
    – AliceD
    Feb 19, 2015 at 5:37
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    $\begingroup$ I'm voting to close this question as off-topic because it is better suited for Parenting.SE $\endgroup$
    – AliceD
    Feb 19, 2015 at 5:38
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    $\begingroup$ I basically agree with Chris. There could be a way of asking this question in a scientific way that would be suited to this site. At the very least, you would need to more explicitly define things like an age range and what behaviours are and are not included in the construct "silly behaviour". It's okay to motivate your question by your specific experience with your nephew, but ultimately you should bring to a more general question. $\endgroup$ Feb 19, 2015 at 6:39
  • $\begingroup$ I think "silly voice, silly way" (though not very technical) is narrow enough in scope to be manageable, and there are a variety of ways to address child behaviour issues in cogsci, so am voting to leave open. I would however, like to see questions with more background research done prior to posting. $\endgroup$
    – Arnon Weinberg
    Feb 19, 2015 at 7:21
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    $\begingroup$ If you want specific advice about how to respond to this behavior, then parenting.SE will be the better site. Responses here will generally focus on the scientific research exploring why kids sometimes behave like this. $\endgroup$
    – Josh
    Feb 19, 2015 at 16:33

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Without knowing the child and the adults in question it is impossible to give more than some very general advice.

The current psychological view on parenting is that a child's behavior can be shaped by conditioning, both in wanted and unwanted ways. E.g. if you withdraw adult attention from the unwanted behavior (this includes not punishing it) and reinforce wanted behavior by rewarding it with attention and smiles, the child's behavior should change, if it is not pathological (which the current case does not sound like). Very likely this child behaves as he does because he cannot get what he wants any other way. His "silly" behahavior "works" in that it gets on your nerves and causes you to react. Through your reaction you have taught this child to act "silly".

If you think there is more to this child's behavior you might want to talk to a child psychologist in person.

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