This paper is based on a study of one hundred twenty children, aged five to twelve years, referred for such persistent impulsive acting out as fire setting and stealing. Four mothers are described in detail. Although of different degrees of maturity they all are in conflict over unsatisfied oral needs. When the hoped for gratification from their husbands does not materialize, their conflicts with their own mothers is reactivated in their dealings with their children. Since they feel chronically deprived they are unable to provide a consistently satisfying milieu for the child. They are unable to set limits on behavior for their children because they fear setting up an intolerable tension in the child and causing it to desire destructive retaliation. They look for satisfaction of their own infantile oral needs through the child; in their identification with the child, they encourage aggressive and dependent behavior. The result is a child who cannot build a