Hi friends - this week on the radio show I’ll be talking live to Dr. Madeline Levine, a practicing psychotherapist and author of “The Price of Privilege: How Parental Pressure and Material Advantage are Creating a Generation of Disconnected and Unhappy Kids.” (I’ll also be writing about her book in my column.)

Here’s why - it’s an excerpt from the book I wanted to share with you in today’s parenting tip (this link you’ll have to paste into your browser)

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/06/25/CMG5EJ6PF71.DTL

Levine deals in her practice with teenagers who get plenty of attention from parents and school, they have a good standard of living - but they are extraordinarily unhappy, more so than teens in the past. Her experience is echoed by her professional peers around the country. What’s going on?

Here’s one hint:

Levine writes that today we set academic standards for our kids that are exceedingly high, while at the same time we have standards for their involvement in family life that are exceedingly low. How true!

I don’t agree with everything she says - she seems to take a more “hands off” view of the teen years than I would - but wow she makes some great points. And this isn’t just about affluent teens, there’s so much here for all parents. You’ll definitely want to have a read of the excerpt- and pass it on!

Happy parenting - Betsy

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

No comments yet.

Comments RSS TrackBack Identifier URI

Name (required)

Mail (will not be published) (required)

Website

Notify me of followup comments via e-mail