Teenagers and Stress

Elkind's classic on "hurried teens" condemns how society pushes adolescents to assume adult roles too soon. This thorough revision argues that new trends among teens--long work hours, rising violence, and pregnancies--make an even stronger case for protecting adolescents instead of pressuring them. "A valuable tour of adolescent thinking".--Ms.

In this volume, the focus is on stress and adaptability in families and family members. The chapters explore not only how a variety of stresses influence family functioning, but also how family process moderates and mediates the contribution of individual and environmental risk and protective factors to personal adjustment.

With the first two editions of this landmark work, Dr. David Elkind eloquently called our attention to the dangers of exposing our children to overwhelming pressures, pressures that can lead to a wide range of childhood and teenage crises. Internationally recognized as the voice of reason and compassion, Dr. Elkind showed that in blurring the boundaries of what is age appropriate, by expecting -- or imposing -- too much too soon, we force our kids to grow up far too fast.

In the two decades since this groundbreaking book first appeared, we have compounded the problem, inadvertently stepping up the assault on childhood in the media, in schools, and at home. Taking a detailed, up-to-the-minute look at the world of today's children and teens in terms of the Internet, classroom culture, school violence, movies, television, and a growing societal incivility, Dr. Elkind shows a whole new generation of parents where hurrying occurs and why and what we can do about it.