Parenting Advice Blog

NurtureShock: New Thinking About Children

In a world of modern, involved, caring parents, why are so many kids aggressive and cruel?  Where is intelligence hidden in the brain, and why does that matter?  Why do cross-racial friendships decrease in schools that are more integrated?  If 98% of kids think lying is morally wrong, then why do 98% of kids lie?  What’s the single most important thing that helps infants learn language?
  NurtureShock is a groundbreaking collaboration between award-winning science journalists Po Bronson and Ashley Merryman.  They argue that when it comes to children, we’ve mistaken good intentions for good ideas.  With impeccable storytelling and razor-sharp analysis, they demonstrate that many of modern society’s strategies for nurturing children are in fact backfiring–because key twists in the science have been overlooked.
  Nothing like a parenting manual, the authors’ work is an insightful exploration of themes and issues that transcend children’s (and adults’) lives.

User Ratings and Reviews

4 Stars This is a great book
It reinforced some of my own ideas, such as kids needing way more sleep than most of them get. But then the chapter on children and race was so surprising and eye-opening. I’d never read any of those studies before and I think that is the most critical section in the book. Parents and teachers need to read it. Wish I had read it when my children were younger. But I did read a lot of parts out loud to my teenage children and we discussed them. So I hope they still benefit from what I learned in this book!

4 Stars WOW!
This is an outstanding book with interesting ideas. There is full documentation for ideas. It will make you think about some practices.

5 Stars Nurture Shock
This book is a needed view for anyone who works with children. A must read for anyone who is in the field a child developement.

5 Stars Good overview, thought provoking!
I’ve recommended this to all my friends with kids. I think it’s great that the authors don’t seem to push a particular ’style’ of parenting, they simply focus on the scientific research. That makes this book accessible and meaningful for parents of every type. The chapters on race, lying, and teens were especially informative and thought-provoking for me.

5 Stars Great Book!!
This book is well researched and each chapter is concise and to the point. Each chapter covers another amazing misconception society shares about raising children. This book is not a parenting manual but is instead the “Freakonomics” of child rearing that looks outside “common sense ideas” these books have perpetuated for years.

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