How to handle behavior of youngest son who is influenced by older siblings

I am in dire straights these days.  I have three boys ages 19,11 and 5.  It is a challenge raising this family, becase it seems like I have three seperate families.  I am concerned with my youngest going into school this coming fall with all the influence he has had from older siblings.  Touch and attitude can be a problem for me, never mind his teachers to come.  Are there any things that I can be doing to de-program him, or to make him understand that he can not act this way without conciquences.  I don't want his first experience with school to be negative as I may expect it to be.

[Kevin Kennedy, Ph.D.]

Dear L. Davis,

I'm not sure what you mean by touch and attitude. However, to modify any particular child behavior you need to define precisely what you expect, and then reinforce this by rewarding it's appearance and, depending on the child's response to positive reinforcement alone, punish the display of behaviors that run contrary to what you expect. Time out is an effective disciplinary response, and if you are not familiar with it you can utilize the SEARCH function on this Forum and you'll find plenty of information about it.

Also, keep in mind that your son may do quite well in school. While many children display normal spectrum behavior problems at home, they do quite well in out-of-home situations at the same time.