Making Decisions About Children: Psychological Questions and Answers - Softcover

H. Rudolph Schaffer

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0631171673 ISBN 13: 9780631171676

Publisher: Blackwell, 1990

Synopsis

'This volume by one of the leading social and developmental psychologists in the field today is a tour de force. Always sound as well as critically astute, Professor Schaffer provides us with a very thoughtful and well-researched set of answers, gleaned from the scientific literature on child development and shaped for understanding by researchers and practitioners alike. The author has done a remarkable service for a field in which the researchers themselves ofter despair of discovering definitive answers and in which clinicians ofter wonder whether the available research can truly inform their practical judgements in everyday urgent situations.' Lewis P. Lipsitt Professor of Psychology and Medical Science, Brown University. - Do women make better parents than men? - Do children need a parent of each sex? - Does separation from parents cause psychological trauma? - Is group day care bad for young children? - Are children harmed by their parent's divorce? These are some of the crucial questions that more and more professional people - lawyers, doctors, social workers, psychologists - are called upon to make in the course of their work with children. Such decisions can have grave implications for children and their families. Therefore, it is imperative that any course of action fully take account of the knowledge accumulated from child development research. The aim of this book is to bridge the gap between research and practice. Professionals will find useful knowledge about children's social development and family relationships set out in an easy to read and meaningful form.

About this title

Review

"H. Rudolph Schaffer has written a most timely volume in this era of broken homes and rapidly changing family lives. His book attempts to bridge the gap between what academicians know about children′s social development and family relationships and the practical concerns of nurses, doctors, lawyers and other professionals who must often weigh alternative courses of action as they attempt to serve children′s best interests in matters of custody, adoption or foster care." Review Of First Edition in Contemporary Psychology.

"The writing style is accessible, the issues and debates are presented in a balanced and clear manner, and, as a result, the conclusions appear well reasoned. This text is especially useful for practitioners working in family health or family counselling agencies." Journal of Family Studies, Vol 7, April 2001

From the Back Cover

This is a fully updated and revised edition of a book that bridges the gap between research and practice in the field of child and family psychology. It is addressed to all those professional people – psychologists, psychiatrists, family lawyers, social workers – who are responsible for arriving at decisions about children, and who require access to an information base provided by research from which they can derive guidelines for action. Making Decisions About Children therefore summarises our knowledge of the sorts of issues that are of concern of those working with children including the effects of maternal employment and of divorce, the implications of different family types and the comparative fitness of men and women as parents.

A number of new issues are added to the second edition, dealing with such matters as the effects of marital conflict, the development of anti – social behaviour and the consequences of physical punishment. The book bridges the gap between research and practice, and will therefore prove to be an invaluable resource to students, academics and professionals alike in a wide range of disciplines.

Edition details

• Publisher: Blackwell
• Publication date: 1990
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0631171673
• ISBN 13: 9780631171676
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 224