The Price of Privilege: How Parental Pressure and Material Advantage Are Creating a Generation of Disconnected and Unhappy Kids
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The Price of Privilege: How Parental Pressure and Material Advantage Are Creating a Generation of Disconnected and Unhappy Kids
Madeline Levine has been a practicing psychologist for twenty-five years, but it was only recently that she began to observe a new breed of unhappy teenager. When a bright, personable fifteen-year-old girl, from a loving and financially comfortable family, came into her office with the word empty carved into her left forearm, Levine was startled. This girl and her message seemed to embody a disturbing pattern Levine had been observing. Her teenage patients were bright, socially skilled, and loved by their affluent parents. But behind a veneer of achievement and charm, many of these teens suffered severe emotional problems. What was going on?
Conversations with educators and clinicians across the country as well as meticulous research confirmed Levine's suspicions that something was terribly amiss. Numerous studies show that privileged adolescents are experiencing epidemic rates of depression, anxiety disorders, and substance abuse -- rates that are higher than those of any other socioeconomic group of young people in this country. The various elements of a perfect storm -- materialism, pressure to achieve, perfectionism, disconnection -- are combining to create a crisis in America's culture of affluence. This culture is as unmanageable for parents -- mothers in particular -- as it is for their children. While many privileged kids project confidence and know how to make a good impression, alarming numbers lack the basic foundation of psychological development: an authentic sense of self. Even parents often miss the signs of significant emotional problems in their "star" children.
In this controversial look at privileged families, Levine offers thoughtful, practical advice as she explodes one child-rearing myth after another. With empathy and candor, she identifies parenting practices that are toxic to healthy self-development and that have contributed to epidemic levels of depression, anxiety, and substance abuse in the most unlikely place -- the affluent family.
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.0 / 5.0
Money Doesn't Always Buy Happiness...:
I'll jump right in and say it -- my husband and I may very well be at the lower end of the target demographic for this book. We both work full time, we live in a relatively affluent area of Northern California, own a home, have a Prius, and are currently contemplating whether to send our kids to public or private school. Nevertheless, I was pretty skeptical about a book that treats upper class kids as an "at risk" group, similar to kids who come from poverty-level backgrounds. Yes, the stories and anecdotes... more info
Lots of interesting information:
The book was filled with interesting insight into how affluent kids are being raised. I appreciated the referenced facts and statistics, and the breakdown of what kids are going through by age. It definitely caused me to re-think the reward-based motivation that I have been using with my children, and re-focusing more on the joy of the activity for it's own sake. I also thought the last chapter for mom's was thought provoking - mom's usually don't have the time to think about ourselves. The book definitely... more info
Best book for this generation:
This is the most informative book I have read in years. I have a troubled teen daughter and I could not understand how our situation got so desperate that we needed to send her to a wilderness program. I thought that with two loving parents and all the advantages in the world that her life would have been wonderful. Now I see why it was not. I have also been able to figure out some of the things I was doing to sabotage her and what I can now do to help her. This book does for affluent teens what "Reviving... more info
excellent:
this is a fabulous book. the love of money over people and the disregard for substantive values are destroying our society. this book sheds a great deal of light on the ways that we are hurting our children and ourselves. it is extremely well-written and intelligent. you won't be disappointed.
