This engagingly written compendium is packed with humorous, dramatic, surprising, and inspiring facts about the past, present, and future of children and childhood. This extensively indexed reference work covers childhood from ancient times to the present day, including child development, family life, child rearing in different cultures, and children in mythology, folklore, and religion. Contemporary issues such as child abuse, poverty, and crime are also covered.

This reference summarizes and overviews current research on adolescence in 31 countries from around the world. The volume begins with a discussion of interdisciplinary and international perspectives on adolescence, with special attention to psychological and sociological approaches. Each of the chapters that follow considers adolescence in a particular country, and the chapters are arranged alphabetically for ease of use. To foster comparative research, each chapter shares a common format, with sections on the historical and sociodemographic background of adolescence since 1945, sociocultural patterns of rites of passage, psychological and social problem behaviors, and policy matters. Each chapter concludes with a list of current references, and the volume ends with a selected bibliography and an appendix of key researchers.

This major reference is a substantially revised edition of Palmore's "International Handbook on Aging," which was voted Choice Outstanding Academic Book of 1980. The reference collects and summarizes information on programs and research in gerontology in most countries where significant work is taking place. The chapters are arranged alphabetically, with each chapter devoted to a particular country. The countries selected represent a wide range of social, political, geographic, and economic conditions, and ten new countries are included in this edition.

Each chapter provides current information on the unique features of the country profiled; the roles and status of the aged; problems of the elderly; programs for older adults; research in biomedical, psychological, and sociological aspects of aging; and sources of additional information. Each chapter closes with a list of works for further consultation, and the handbook concludes with an appendix of gerontological associations and a bibliography. Gerontologists, social scientists, and policymakers will find this reference a valuable and current guide to developments and research on aging around the world.

Harvey Schwartz's territory is the severe end of the child sexual abuse continuum, where victims' experiences are so unthinkable and their adaptations so bizarre that the rest of us are tempted to pronounce them fictions-whereupon we become complicit by subverting the survivors' struggles to heal. Schwartz synthesizes trauma theory and relational psychoanalysis to make sense of perpetrator, collaborator, and victim pathologies, and exposes the tortuous double-binds of therapy for and with dissociative patients. His office is the last stop on a kind of underground treatment railroad; his say-it-isn't-so case material reverberates throughout.

One of the consequences of the digital revolution is the availability and pervasiveness of media and technology. They became an integral part of many people's lives, including children, who are often exposed to media and technology at an early age. Due to this early exposure, children have become targeted consumers for businesses and other organizations that seek to utilize the data they generate. The Handbook of Research on Children's Consumption of Digital Media is a scholarly research publication that examines how children have become consumers as well as how their consumption habits have changed in the age of digital and media technologies. Featuring current research on cyber bullying, social media, and digital advertising, this book is geared toward marketing and advertising professionals, consumer researchers, international business strategists, academicians, and upper-level graduate students seeking current research on the transformation of child to consumer.

The technological capacity to transform biology - repairing, reshaping and replacing body parts, chemicals and functions - is now part of our lives. Humanity is confronted with a variety of affordable and non-invasive 'enhancement technologies': anti-ageing medicine, aesthetic surgery, cognitive and sexual enhancers, lifestyle drugs, prosthetics and hormone supplements. This collection focuses on why people find these practices so seductive and provides ethnographic insights into people's motives and aspirations as they embrace or reject enhancement technologies, which are closely entangled with negotiations over gender, class, age, nationality and ethnicity.

This book opens up histories of childhood and youth in South African historiography. It looks at how childhoods changed during South Africa's industrialisation, and traces the ways in which institutions, first the Dutch Reformed Church and then the Cape government, attempted to shape white childhood to the future benefit of the colony.

This edited collection is the first to address the topic of adolescence in Irish history. It brings together established and emerging scholars to examine the experience of Irish young adults from the 'affective revolution' of the early nineteenth century to the emergence of the teenager in the 1960s.

Through a variety of case studies, Transnational Histories of Youth in the Twentieth Century examines the emergence of youth and young people as a central historical force in the global history of the twentieth century.

They say if you love someone, you have to let them go. But what if they are your child?'A book that will break your heart and then piece it slowly back together.' Sinead Moriarty 'Touching and poignant, this book took me on an emotional ride. A gripping and absorbing read.' Leah Mercer 'A story that will stay with you long after the last page. Beautiful!' Brooke Harris All Sarah McIntyre has ever wanted was a loving, happy family. So when her husband JP announces on Christmas Day that he is leaving her and their two children, 9 year old Harry and 4 year old Robyn, Sarah is left reeling. But things are set to get worse when Robyn is diagnosed with an aggressive brain tumour. Can JP and Sarah unite to fight their biggest battle yet? or will they be on opposing sides once again? With the couple at loggerheads and with Robyn's condition deteriorating day-by-day, precious time is running out and JP is getting desperate... The Last Days of Us is a tender story of hope and forgiveness that asks the question how far would you go to save your child? Perfect for fans of Clare Mackintosh's After the End and Sinead Moriarty's The Good Mother. What readers are saying about The Last Days of Us:'I just finished your beautiful book. It's a book that will break your heart and then piece it slowly back together. A story of unconditional love, loss and compassion that will pull at your heartstrings.' Sinead Moriarty 'Heartbreaking and heart-warming. I fell head-over-heels for this family and I wanted to hug them all. A story that will stay with you long after the last page. Beautiful!' Brooke Harris 'A moving and sensitively told account of a family's worst nightmare, and how our biggest challenges can bring about the most profound change.' Roisin Meaney

The core of the research reported in this study was a survey of men and women 55 years and older sampled from a comprehensive list of residents. The authors asked questions about social networks, control over household assets, household composition, life satisfaction, and subjective health, among other things. The social network questions had been used in an earlier study done in Kentucky. Nearly everything else had been developed for the Delhi study. The findings were similar to those in the earlier study: the size of people's networks does not decline materially until they are older (80 plus). Age itself did not seem that important, but health was crucial. Persons who reported they were healthy had larger networks.

As one might expect, joint family life has great impact on the nature of social life among older people. This has to do with the big difference in the situation of men and women in India. In addition to being patrilineal kin groups, joint families are dominated by male economic interests. The males as a collective group inherit property. Women have much less control of household assets. This ethnographic fact appeared very clearly in the answers to questions about participation in household decision making. High involvement in decisions, which the authors construed as a measure of power, spilled over into other aspects of the social aging process. Persons who were powerful in their households tended to have large networks, better subjective health, and much higher life satisfaction. They also tended to be men. The women tended to have small networks, low life satisfaction, lower subjective health, and less power. These differences between men and women were all substantial and highly significant. Gender is an extraordinarily important factor in the outcomes of social aging processes in India.

James Latimore considers the problem of good results or good reports in the context of his study of one small agency's transition from financial independence to government funding dependence. As Latimore points out, private philanthropy has played a large role in America's social and economic history. In recent years, government funding has flowed into private agencies. What happens when private and public overlap? Does public funding change the direction of an agency? Does it become less client centered and more program oriented? How is this change manifested? What specific changes occur in the heretofore private philanthropy? Latimore's study shows that the strengths of philanthropic intervention may be negated by the bureaucratic accountability that accompanies public funding. Latimore suggests that accountability alters the thrust and management of programs in order to show good results.

""Taking Care of Barbara" is an inspirational resource book for anyone living in the world of Alzheimer's. There are clear and concise caregiver tips and references in dealing with the everyday struggles that come with the progression of the disease. What a gift to know and be able to anticipate the needs of our loved one when they may not be able to communicate them. Most importantly, this book is a celebration of family and the relationship between the caregiver and the patient. It lifts the caregiver above the everyday struggles and reminds us of where to find the strength and joy in the frequent frustrations of the day. It inspires us to love beyond the external happenings and shows us there lies a deeper and greater gain that will enrich our spirit. The world of Alzheimer's may feel overwhelming, but this book encourages caregivers to get out of bed, put their feet on the floor and face the day with renewed strength and purpose."
-Kelly Cason Hunter, Hospice Volunteer, Pediatric Nurse

This first-hand empirical study of elderly Soviet Jews who immigrated to Israel during the Great Exodus of 1989 to 1991 demonstrates the double jeopardy of transnational relocation in later life. The book traces the depletions that occurred in the elderly immigrants' social networks and examines the impact of a range of network factors on their personal well-being. Given the dearth of systematic field research into the problems and needs of elderly immigrants, and of this group in particular, gerontologists and sociologists will find this case study invaluable. Students, teachers, policymakers, social service providers, and other professional practitioners will gain from the findings about elderly immigrants' network relationships and from practical suggestions for the planning of effective network interventions on their behalf.

This collection of articles, all being published in English for the first time, focuses on the child-rearing and educational practices of the Kibbutz, and the effect they have on children. Unlike other Kibbutz studies, however, written by outsiders and non-Israelis, almost all of these studies have been authored by Kibbutz members. Fifteen articles are included, drawn from data obtained by the Institute of Research on Kibbutz Education at Oranim Haifa University, and reflect the concern of workers in a system rather than the preoccupation of outside observers. The studies cover a wide range of topics and age groups, from early infancy through adolescence, and taken as a whole provide a panoramic view of the issues of concern to Kibbutz education in their historical context. Each article in the volume was chosen according to three criteria: it had to represent the principal questions of concern to the kibbutz educational system today; reflect the changes that have taken place in recent years in child-rearing; and display an exacting methodology. The studies are divided into four parts according to subject and age groups, covering early childhood and motherhood, the transition from communal to family sleeping arrangements, elementary school children, and adolescence. An additional part brings together articles that fall outside of these categories. Each part and each study also features an introduction containing specific comments, and the book concludes with a bibliography, a name index, and a subject index. This collection of intra-cultural studies will be a significant addition to academic and public libraries, and a valuable reference for courses in sociology, education, and Israelistudies.

This volume addresses the conditions allowing the transformation of specific children s rights into capabilities in settings as different as children s parliaments, organized leisure activities, contexts of vulnerability, children in care. It addresses theoretical questions linked to children s agency and reflexivity, education, the life cycle perspective, child participation, evolving capabilities and citizenship. The volume highlights important issues that have to be taken into account for the implementation of human rights and the development of peoples capabilities. The focus on children s capabilities along a rights-based approach is an inspiring perspective that researchers and practitioners in the field of human rights would like to deepen. "

As nineteenth-century Britain became increasingly urbanized and industrialized, the number of children living in towns grew rapidly. At the same time, Horn considers the increasing divisions within urban society, not only between market towns and major manufacturing and trading centers, but within individual towns, as rich and poor became more segregated.

During the Victorian period, public attitudes toward children and childhood shifted dramatically, often to the detriment of those at the lower end of the social scale--including paupers and juvenile delinquents. Drawing on original research, including anecdotes, first-hand accounts, and a wealth of photographs, The Victorian Town Child describes in detail the changing lives of all classes of Victorian town children, from those of prosperous business and professional families to working-class families, where unemployment and overcrowding were particular problems. Horn also examines the issues of juvenile labor and exploitation, how factory work and education were combined, how crime and punishment were dealt with among children, and the changes in health and infant death rates over the period.

Traditionally, psychology has concentrated on factors that contribute to individuals becoming unhealthy and has paid very little attention to those individuals who become healthy when all indications would predict the opposite. Many children overcome adverse conditions and become successful adults. Their stories often go untold, taking backseat to stories and investigations of failed lives and broken dreams. This book retrospectively explores the lives of several individuals who were able to overcome hardships and excel professionally. The authors believe that, through the lives of these individuals, the reader can learn how to help others overcome adverse life circumstances.

This very first comprehensive book-length reference guide dealing with older adult education synthesizes current information about theoretical developments with specific practical details about the latest programs, policies, and research in the field. It is unique in placing the subject of lifelong learning into historical perspectives, discussing ways in which programs have been transformed over the last 15 to 20 years, and in considering the impact of institutional policies on older adult education. This guide points to demographic trends relating to aging and older learners; discusses older learner motives in relation to program missions and rationales; describes new opportunities for retirement-age people and the special role of education today; reviews the history of 12 different types of programs; compares five community-based model programs in college and universities, senior centers, shopping centers, and churches and synagogues; considers computer and electronic learning programs; reviews research and programs dealing with intergenerational education; and assesses future prospects in the field. Appendices describe important organizations, programs, sources of information, state tuition waiver policies, and other guidelines and data. Relevant statistics, research findings, numerous tables, original documents, and anecdotes about the experiences of older learners further enrich this state-of-the discipline reference guide for academic, professional, and public libraries and broad audiences of teachers, students, professionls, and general readers concerned with older Americans.

An exploration of the fascinating and controversial history of girls' education in America from the colonial era to the computer age. Girls and Literacy in America offers a tour of opportunities, obstacles, and achievements in girls' education from the limited possibilities of colonial days to the wide-open potential of the Internet generation. Six essays, written by historians and focused on particular historical periods, examine the extensive range of girls' literacies in both educational and extracurricular settings. Girls from various ethnic and racial backgrounds, social classes, religions, and geographic areas of the nation are included. A host of primary documents, including such items as an 18th century hornbook to excerpts from girls' "conversations" in Internet chat rooms allow readers an opportunity to evaluate for themselves some of the materials mentioned in the volume's opening essays. And finally, an extensive bibliography will be invaluable to students expected to conduct more extensive primary research. Contributors are experts on literacy including E. Jennifer Monaghan (Brooklyn College), Amy Goodburn (University of Nebraska-Lincoln), and Andrea A. Lunsford (Stanford University) Primary documents printed in full or excerpted include diaries, letters, school assignments, newspaper advice columns, short stories, and poems, all targeted to or written by girls A chronology of the reading and writing done by girls is presented in six essays beginning in the colonial period and ending in the 21st century An extensive bibliography includes archival holdings, secondary scholarship, and online resources

Childhood, Youth and Emotions in Modern History is the first book to innovatively combine the history of childhood and youth with the history of emotions, combining multiple national, colonial, and global perspectives.

When Congress enacted Social Secuirty in 1935, with the age of retirement set at age 65, average life expectancy was 62 years. By the time Medicare was enacted 30 years later, life expectancy had risen to age 70. Since the enactment of Medicare, life expectancy has risen to age 76 today and may be expected to increase further in the decades to come. Clearly, the increase in post-retirement life expectancy has significant implications for the level of national expenditures attributable to an aging population. One of the approaches suggested as a solution to the so-called income transfer problem is to redefine old age, that is, to push retirement and its associated benefits off to a later age. This would effectively increase the size of the workforce, with older workers continuing to contribute their payroll taxes for an extended period of time. The critical question Sicker poses is, will there be enough appropriate employment opportunities for a growing number of older workers in the workforce of the future? The evidence for a positive response is far from clear or compelling.

Sicker examines the prospective place of the aging worker in the employment environment of the 21st century in light of the restructuring of American business and the world of work in the final decades of the last century. In doing so, he raises serious concerns about the validity and utility of some of the neoclassical economic ideas and assumptions that have become part of the conventional wisdom of our time. Sicker contends that these dubious propositions have unwittingly contributed signficantly to the problem through their manifestation in public policy. However, the principal focus of his analysis is not on economic theory as such, but on the realities and uncertainties that an aging American workforce will face in the decades to come. This book is significant reading for scholars, researchers, and the general public interested in labor force and aging policy issues.