Adolescents Books

This book questions the very deep assumptions made about dreaming by both psychologists and members of the folk at large. Apparently, according to the best available evidence -- in the form of two very detailed studies of children over decades -- dreaming requires a relatively sophisticated cognitive achievement that takes place gradually and much later than people assume. Four and five year olds, Foulkes finds reason to believe, almost never dream -- and when and if they do, their dreams are much more static and absent of human agency or emotional content than adult dreams are.

"But wait!" you say. "My son or daughter sometimes wakes up from scary dreams!" Maybe. But, and here is the point: your day-to-day activities offer only anecdotal evidence, subject to various interpretations and possible biases; this is a psychological question, and psychological methodologies are those best-equipped to answer it. That's what this book is about.

Foulkes outlines his methodology and results in clear layman's terms; I am not a psychologist, but I found his descriptions and explanations compelling and lucid. Anyone interested in a real understanding of what dreaming is -- and not just what people think it is -- would do well to buy and read this book. Highly recommend.

(I should add one caveat: in addition to the fascinating and plausible conclusions Foulkes draws about dreaming, he also advertises some striking claims about consciousness. These, I think, are much less developed and convincing. But perhaps I merely misunderstood.)

Jerry Moe is probably one of the most gifted men in the US for working with the children of an alcoholic family. He works at Betty Ford Center, and he runs their children's center. I heard him speak once, and he made the audience laugh and cry. This book is a treasure.

An absolutely brilliant book! This book demystified the process of psychological testing. The author uses up to date references to explain how the various domains of psychological testing can be used in an integrated way to assist treatment. Wodrich has written a book which serves as a desk reference for many assessment instruments as well as a text for students of psychology and counselling. I strongly recomend this text.

I recently attended Brooklyn College and as a Children's Studies minor I found this book invaluable to studying children's rights. The United Nations Convention Rights of the Child is summarized in the text. It is a document that consists of the rights of children regarding their rights to education, human rights, legal rights etc. There are also several law cases outlined regarding children. If you are a law student, sociology, psychology, humanities major, you need this book. If you are a teacher, college professor, social worker, parent or deal with children on any level, you need this book. I wish I had known of it earlier in my college career.

This book is actually a reasearch paper or thesis. Found it interesting that kids from all over the world have the same 'need' to bound with nature. Learned some 'technical , psychological' information in the area of child development. Would recommend you read this and Last CHild in The Woods.

This is a treasure trove for anyone who leads children's groups: scout leaders, camp counselors, Sunday school teacher, etc. The games are timeless, and many require no equipment. Children love the games, and enjoy the connection they feel with the children of another time and place.

It's been 4 yrs since I read this book, and I still recommend it often to young therapists as well as to the most seasoned. One of the most skilled child clinicians I know told me that reading this book has changed the way she practices child therapy.Everyone who has read it (that I know of) has liked it and purchased their own copy after starting to read mine. It is written in a very readable fashion, which will be a delight to those who have trudged through dense clinical texts. Prior to reading this book, I used conventional board games merely as filler, and usually felt guilty about doing so. Shortly after I read this, I was able to put them to good clinical use. Highly recommended.

College-level collections strong in media history as well as education studies will find plenty to like with Children, Adolescents, and Media Violence: A Critical Look at the Research. Here are the analyses, studies and developmental perspective on media violence issues which focus on evaluating research with development in mind to identify the next research process step. Different forms of media violence, from animation to sports, are surveyed along with the major theories that explain the effects of such violence. Video games are included in chapters which will appeal to undergraduates and graduate students in a range of courses; from media history and communications to psychology and child development.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

Although billed as a "textbook," this book is actually for anyone -- parent, teacher, interested adult -- who wants to know how various media affect kids and what we can do about it. Fed up with what you're seeing on TV and at the movies? Read this book! Concerned about school shootings and their link to media violence? Read this book! Want some ammunition to fire back at Hollywood producers who shrug their shoulders? Read this book!

This is an excellent, easy to use tool when working up a mental health diagnosis for a child/young adolescent. Just because it's easy to use, does not mean it is not grounded in good psychiatric practice and techniques. It is! I highly recommend this book, particularly for someone who is branching out from only adult mental health, to include children/adolescents/families in his/her practice. A tremendous help!