Between Parent and Child: The Bestselling Classic That Revolutionized Parent-Child Communication » (REV)

DR. ALICE GINOTT is a clinical psychologist who has conducted workshops with parents and teachers and lectured widely on parent-child relationships. She is a recipient of the Eleanor Roosevelt Humanities Award. Dr. Ginott lives in New York City.

DR. H. WALLACE GODDARD is an associate professor of family life at the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension and section chair of Education and Enrichment with the National Council on Family Relations. He lives in Little Rock, Arkansas.

Over the past thirty-five years, Between Parent and Child has helped millions of parents around the world strengthen their relationships with their children. Written by renowned psychologist Dr. Haim Ginott, this revolutionary book offered a straightforward prescription for empathetic yet disciplined child rearing and introduced new communication techniques that would change the way parents spoke with, and listened to, their children. Dr. Ginott’s innovative approach to parenting has influenced an entire generation of experts in the field, and now his methods can work for you, too.

In this revised edition, Dr. Alice Ginott, clinical psychologist and wife of the late Haim Ginott, and family relationship specialist Dr. H. Wallace Goddard usher this bestselling classic into the new century while retaining the book’s positive message and Haim Ginott’s warm, accessible voice. Based on the theory that parenting is a skill that can be learned, this indispensable handbook will show you how to:
• Discipline without threats, bribes, sarcasm, and punishment
• Criticize without demeaning, praise without judging, and express anger without hurting
• Acknowledge rather than argue with children’s feelings, perceptions, and opinions
• Respond so that children will learn to trust and develop self-confidence

Library Journal

When Between Parent and Child was first published in 1965, clinical psychologist Ginott (d. 1973) broke ground with his message that good parents are not born but made by learning communication skills. Alice Ginott, Haim's wife and a retired psychology professor, and Goddard, chair of the National Council on Family Relations, aim to update this best seller for the 21st century. The basic ideas haven't been tampered with-as the text stresses, when talking to their children, "parents should be protective of feelings, not critical of behavior." The chapters on discipline and especially sex education have been the most extensively rewritten to reflect societal changes, e.g., views on masturbation. The epilog has also been extended to address instances when children may need professional help (9/11 is mentioned). Empathic communication is nothing new, and some of Haim's diction is outdated, but the author's simple formula repeated in many and various examples helps parents understand what it really means to respect children while being authoritative. Adele Faber's How To Talk So Kids Will Listen and Listen So Kids Will Talk offers exercises that help parents practice Ginott's principles. Recommended for larger public libraries.-Maryse Breton, Davis Branch Lib., CA Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.