The most common reason for this particular behavior of a child is that they know if they behave in a particular way (like showing tantrums or sitting quietly), it will get them the attention they desire or somebody will fulfill their demands. Parents in the current scenario are becoming overindulgent and therefore keeping their child happy has become a constant goal.

This results in the parent providing for the child’s demands and pampering them constantly. It becomes a habit for a child to use the ‘tantrum’ to get attention from the parent and get their way out. As a parent we need to learn to deal with the tantrums of a child.

Parents have to look and observe in the family environment. Notice that if any family members behaves like this (i.e. do any of the adults in the family use the silent treatment to put their point across). Children are keen observer and they learn things from their environment.

Share your feeling with the child. Tell them how you feel (may be sad, unhappy, alone, etc) when they don’t talk to you. Also, ask them why are they behaving in this manner? Prepare yourself before talking to the child and listen to the child in a non-judgmental way without any preconceived notions. Be interactive and suggest to them possible reasons for this behavior.

Finally be straight and tell the child that this behavior is not acceptable and he/she will not get what he/she wants through this route. And in case they want something they need to ask for it in a manner directly without this tantrum. As a parent you would need to be stern to not give-in to the tantrum or else the cycle of fulfilling the demand and tantrum would start again.