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In some ways, today is the best time in history to be a girl. Opportunities for success are as unlimited as her dreams, yet an alarm is sounding, revealing a disturbing portrait of the stresses affecting girls of all ages. Societal expectations, cultural trends, and conflicting messages are creating what psychologist and researcher Stephen P. Hinshaw calls a triple bind--the pressure for girls to:
• excel at "girl skills" -- be pretty, nice, and compliant
• achieve "boy goals" -- compete, be athletic, and get straight As
• be impossibly perfect 100% of the time The triple bind is putting more and more girls at risk for depression, suicide, eating disorders, and aggression. Dr. Hinshaw's fascinating and groundbreaking book shows concerned parents how to listen, learn, and help girls unlock the shackles of the triple bind. Hinshaw discusses many key topics, including:
• Today's Trap: The world is your daughter's oyster, but conflict can turn self-expression into self-eradication
• Nature versus Nurture: Genes, hormones, and the role of biology in confronting the triple bind
• Life in the Pressure Cooker: How the pressure to excel at everything sets girls up for crisis
• Getting all Pussycat Dolled Up: The over-sexualization of teenagers, pre-teens, and little girls
• The Wired Child: How our cyber culture exacerbates the triple bind Combining moving personal stories about girls and their families with extensive research into genetic risk, vulnerability, and cultural influence, Dr. Hinshaw provides the strategies and tools necessary for parents who want to empower their daughters to deal with today's pressures in healthy ways. About the Author: Stephen P. Hinshaw, Ph.D., is Professor and Chair of the Department of Psychology at the University of California, Berkeley. He is an internationally recognized psychologist and researcher whose work on troubled children has received ongoing attention from the press. Articles and interviews featuring him and his work have appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, Boston Globe, San Francisco Chronicle, Chicago Tribune, and USA Today. TV
appearances include NBC's Today Show and Nightly News and CNN's World News Tonight, CNN Live, and Health News. |
