CBN News, “The 700 Club” -- March 5, 2009
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It’s no secret that technology -- cell phones, PSPs, xBox360s, the Internet, iPods, -- all of it has all changed our lives. It’s also not surprising that our children effortlessly master each new gadget. To be fair they do make life easier. You can get anyone or anything you need in an instant just the way you want it. BUT when the access that we get from our technology intersects with the excesses of this day and age, it creates challenges that parents and kids have never had to face before.
Generation Text – Raising Well Adjusted kids in the Age of Instant Everything is written by Dr. Michael Osit, a clinical psychologist who has worked with young children and adolescents for more than three decades. In this book he examines the challenges of parenting amid this collision of forces. He looks at how our too much of everything combined with the instant access to everything shapes our children’s values, attitudes, and behavior in ways that are fundamentally different and not always better, than previous generations. And he wants us to be aware of how this can all be overwhelming for a child’s developing and impressionable mind and how to best help children navigate the overload successfully.
We all want to raise well-adjusted kids. We want them to have a strong sense of self that has nothing to do with all the “stuff” they have, we want them to have healthy relationships with their peers and family and – perhaps most importantly – we want them to be equipped to make smart decisions when we are not there to steer them in the right direction. But the truth is many kids are struggling-having a sense of entitlement, a poor work ethic, and distorted values. Parents are also struggling – worrying all the time about what’s okay and what’s not.
Dr. Osit draws upon countless patient stories about the families he treats. “They have so much stuff,” they lament. “So many of the kids are so rude. They play too many video games. He never talks to anyone, he’s always got those headphones on. They have no patience. They never have to wait for anything. She doesn’t take responsibility for anything, she just calls me to fix her problems. Should I get him a cell-phone? Or what do I do now that he lost the cell phone.” You get the idea.
In Generation Text, Dr. Osit dissects the current climate within which we are raising our kids so we can now grasp the big picture. Instead of seeing dozens of disconnected and confusing problems and questions, we can now understand our children as part of a generation affected by our 24/7, instant everything society. From his decades of working with kids and families in crisis, he not only helps parents see exactly what they are up against, but he also provides strategies for successfully coping with the particular challenges of growing up in the millennium. This generation is not lost, they’re just flailing. But with sensible and smart parenting, our kids will be able to get all of the advantages of technology and the many options available to them will become opportunities instead of problems. Generation Text is an important book that throws parents a lifeline. Every parent who hears about this Generation Text has said, “I need that book.” There are a lot of parents out there that do, and of course that means Generation Text is a must read for parents and professionals.
Click HERE to read an Excerpt from the Book
Purchase Generation Text: Raising Well-Adjusted Kids in an Age of Instant Everything