Synopses & Reviews
This ground-breaking book shows how parents and teachers can understand and prevent the tremendous increase of physical violence -- fighting, brutality, weapons, murder -- perpetrated by young girls. Our two Harvard-based, nationally acclaimed, mediagenic authors present here a plan to help our daughters become strong, confident, powerful and independent young women without being violent. Until recently, we've assumed that boys were the primary if not exclusive perpetrators of violence. In the past three years, however, there has been a tremendous statistical increase in the incidence of physical violence generated by pubescent and teenage girls, both against each other and also exploding out against the rest of the world. Over 250f teenagers arrested for violent crime are now girls. The majority of these violent girls, moreover, are not from minority groups living in urban ghettos but white kids from the suburbs and other privileged communities. So why this, why now, and what can we do about it? This explosive, disturbing, but ultimately constructive book by two street-savvy experts tells us exactly what is going on, the real reasons why girl violence is at a tremendous increase (while boy violence is declining), and most importantly how we have to update our basic attitudes, reform our social programs, and change our judicial and criminal justices system. One of the most important and powerful messages underlying the analysis and specific guidelines proposed in this book is that GIRLS ARE DIFFERENT THAN BOYS. Feminism and other well-intentioned philosophies have told us that to be fair and equal we hadto operate on the basis that girls should be socialized and approached the way boys are -- so all of our teaching, social prevention and rehab programs, and judicial/criminal justice response have up to now been the same for boys and girls. Big mistake, our authors conclude. Instead, they offer theory and practice which are informed by the unique aspects of girls' socialization, vulnerabilities, peer relationships, family dynamics, cultural roles, and other special characteristics that make girls quite different than boys. Book includes sample dialogues, alternative ending scenarios (best case/worst case), and other practical techniques to anticipate problems, recognize the warning signs, prevent daughters and friends from taking the wrong turn, intervene when necessary, engage teachers, counselors, clergy, and other members of the community in getting help, and understand exactly the path to power and confidence without physical violence.
Review
"This provides answers."
—Bill Cosby
"This book provides solid insights and suggestions as to steps we must take to address girl violence before it gets out of hand. I applaud the authors’ work, commitment, and their heartfelt and practical advice."
—From the Foreword by Janet Reno
"This book is a much-needed wake-up call for everyone who still believes that violence is something girls just don’t do. Parents and teachers both will be grateful for its insights into how to identify negative influences and what adults can do to help."
—Marian Wright Edelman, president, Children’s Defense Fund
"A timely book! The authors warn of the distressing increase in violence among girls. Their recommendations can help parents and policymakers stem the tide of this frightening trend."
—Alvin F. Poussaint, M.D., professor of psychiatry, Harvard Medical School and Judge Baker Children’s Center, Boston, Massachusetts
Synopsis
Specific techniques for confronting the alarming epidemic of physical violence among girls
In this groundbreaking work, two Harvard-based, nationally acclaimed authors present a plan to end the increasing physical brutality perpetrated by young girls and help our daughters become strong, confident, and powerful young women without being violent. The authors offer sound theory and practice illustrated with vignettes and case histories, along with specific ways parents, teachers, social workers, and policymakers can respond to this crisis, from inner city ghettos to suburban schools.
Synopsis
Sugar and Spice and No Longer Nice is a groundbreaking book that offers parents and teachers a primer for understanding and preventing the increasing incidents of physical violence--hazing, brutality, fighting, weapons, murder--by young girls. Written by Drs. Deborah Prothrow-Stith and Howard R. Spivak—the renowned Harvard- and Tufts-based experts on preventing youth violence—this important book offers a plan to help our daughters become strong, confident, powerful, and independent young women without being violent.
Synopsis
Until recently, it was assumed that boys were the primary, if not exclusive, perpetrators of violence. Boys are still primary, but things are changing. There has been a tremendous statistical increase in the incidence of physical violence generated by pubescent and teenage girls, both against one another and occasionally exploding against the rest of the world. This violence will not be confined, as many think, to poor inner-city girls but will reach (just as it did with boys) all kinds of suburban, rural, and urban communities across a broad spectrum of demographics.
Sugar and Spice and No Longer Nice is a groundbreaking book that offers parents and teachers a primer for understanding and preventing the increasing incidents of physical violence--hazing, brutality, fighting, weapons, murder--by young girls. Written by Drs. Deborah Prothrow-Stith and Howard R. Spivak—the renowned Harvard- and Tufts-based experts on preventing youth violence—this important book offers a plan to help our daughters become strong, confident, powerful, and independent young women without being violent.
The book is well grounded in scientific data and filled with illustrative examples of girls’ real-life stories of violence. The stories cover a range of issues and risk factors that focus on girls’ violent and aggressive behavior. Sugar and Spice and No Longer Nice offers a plan for creating a girl-oriented approach to preventing violence and answers such questions as
- How is the violent behavior of girls different from that of boys?
- What can parents do to prevent aggressive behavior in girls?
- What can schools and educators do to prevent violent behavior?
- What can communities do to address the issue of violence and girls?
- Is it possible to reverse this trend?
Sugar and Spice and No Longer Nice is a call to action for changing our attitudes, improving our parenting skills, confronting our cultural norms and media images, and taking responsibility for all our children.
About the Author
Deborah Prothrow-Stith, M.D., is associate dean for faculty development and professor of public health practice and founding director of the Division of Public Health Practice at the Harvard University School of Public Health. Prothrow-Stith is a pioneer of the effort in America to understand youth violence as a public health problem—not just a law enforcement problem.
Howard R. Spivak, M.D., is chief of the Division of General Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine and vice president for community health programs at the New England Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts. He is also professor of pediatrics and community health at Tufts University School of Medicine and director of the Tufts University Center for Children.
Prothrow-Stith and Spivak coauthored Murder Is No Accident: Understand and Preventing Youth Violence in America (Jossey-Bass, 2004).
Table of Contents
Foreword (Janet Reno).
Acknowledgments.
Part One: Understanding the Challenge.
1. We Have a Problem.
2. Hidden Aggression Becomes Outward Violence.
3. Facts and Figures.
4. Risk Factors and Protective Factors.
5. Feminization of the Superhero.
Part Two: Taking On the Challenge.
6. Tips for Parents.
7. Tips for Teachers and Schools.
8. What Communities Can Do.
9. A Call to Action.
Notes.
Resources.
About the Authors.
Index.