In this book, Professor Ole Jacob Madsen analyses the implications of Scandinavia's current concern for the mental health problems of adolescents, said to be struggling in the face of increasing demands for achievement and success. It critically examines our understanding of this so-called "achievement generation", questioning whether today's youth are really worse off than previous generations and how we have come to believe that this is so. The author's wide-ranging investigation draws on a large body of research, as well as considering socio-political, historical and regional factors that might be affecting the resilience and mental health among young people. It also provides original psycholinguistic studies of popular media concepts associated with these issues including: "the achievement generation", "pathological perfection" and "the good girl syndrome". Deconstructing Scandinavia's "Achievement Generation" presents an engaging contribution to key debates around therapeutic culture and society in the 21st century. It will appeal to students and scholars of critical and social psychology, sociology, anthropology, philosophy; as well as to those working in education, social work and mental health.

Betrayal, secrets, revenge, and murder: they're in the blood in a provocative novel of psychological suspense by the award-winning, internationally bestselling author of Everything Is Mine. As Norway's newly appointed minister of justice, child-rights advocate Clara Lofthus has a chance to accomplish something meaningful on behalf of the most vulnerable members of society. It couldn't be more personal. After her husband's death, she is the sole caretaker of her twin sons, Andreas and Nikolai. She's also still haunted by her own traumatic childhood-and the lengths to which she was willing to go to pursue her own brand of vigilante justice. How far? No one ever needs to know. And this is just one of Clara's secrets. Then one day, Clara comes home from work to make a terrifying discovery: her sons have been kidnapped. Clara's search leads to her hometown in Western Norway, where she learns that her mother has been released from the mental hospital she has been living at for the past thirty years. Hot on Clara's heels is a local reporter, who is every bit as relentless as she is. He's determined to disrupt Clara's life even further and will not rest until he exposes the truth about her past. As the fate of her sons hangs in the balance, the demons of Clara's past are flushed out of hiding, threatening to come home to roost.

In this book, Professor Ole Jacob Madsen analyses the implications of Scandinavia's current concern for the mental health problems of adolescents, said to be struggling in the face of increasing demands for achievement and success. It critically examines our understanding of this so-called "achievement generation", questioning whether today's youth are really worse off than previous generations and how we have come to believe that this is so. The author's wide-ranging investigation draws on a large body of research, as well as considering socio-political, historical and regional factors that might be affecting the resilience and mental health among young people. It also provides original psycholinguistic studies of popular media concepts associated with these issues including: "the achievement generation", "pathological perfection" and "the good girl syndrome". Deconstructing Scandinavia's "Achievement Generation" presents an engaging contribution to key debates around therapeutic culture and society in the 21st century. It will appeal to students and scholars of critical and social psychology, sociology, anthropology, philosophy; as well as to those working in education, social work and mental health.