Professor plans online review of parenting books

by Mark McGowan

An NIU professor plans to help harried mothers and fathers of teens by launching an online library of reviews of parenting books sometime this summer. M Cecil Smith, a professor in the Department of Educational Psychology and Foundations, has researched and collected student-written reviews of the books for years.

M Cecil Smith

"I teach a course in adolescent development, and I'm really interested in this genre of parent-education books, these self-help books for parents of adolescents," Smith said. "A non-commercial Web site that published good reviews—critical reviews—of these self-help books might be a good resource for parents or librarians or classroom teachers or whomever might be looking for good referrals."

With titles such as "How to Keep Your Teenager Out of Trouble and What to Do if You Can't," "Now I Know Why Tigers Eat Their Young: Surviving a New Generation of Teenagers" and "Yes, Your Teen is Crazy: Loving Your Kid without Losing Your Mind," picking the right book can become difficult.

Smith has a three-page, single-spaced list of similar books published since 1985. His list of titles from the 20^th century, which he figures isn't nearly complete, names more than a few hundred books. Dozens of new books are released each year.

Authors range from practicing psychologists, physicians, pediatricians and other mental health professionals who work with teens and families to educators, former classroom teachers, youth workers and, occasionally, parents who "survived" their children's adolescence and offer personal perspectives.

Many titles focus on a single issue, such as drugs, alcohol, sex, how to talk to teens or how to parent an out-of-control teen. Others deal with education-related topics, including ADD, low self-esteem or a learning disability.

Although books on parenting appeared in Europe as early as the 18^th century, Smith traces their current popularity to Dr. Spock and his 1946 classic on rearing children.

"Every parent probably has a copy of Dr. Spock's book. Forty or fifty million books were sold since it was first published," he said. "I'm sure I have a paperback copy in my house. It's really the bible, of at least infant and early-childhood care, and it really set the stage for this whole genre of books."

Students in Smith's classes over the years have read and evaluated dozens of the books, starting with those published in the beginning of the 20^th century through the recent onslaught of titles in the 1990s.

Smith put the work aside for a while, but returned to it recently when he revised a manuscript on the project.

"I just got to thinking about the whole issue," he said. "Being on the Web myself and seeing the resources out there, I'm constantly looking for information to use in my courses. I thought this might be a valuable resource."

He is seeking more content and welcomes brief reviews. His Web site (www.cedu.niu.edu/~smith) contains instructions and a standard format for submitting reviews, which he will edit and post.

"I'm asking people to write reviews and contribute them to the Web site: people who might be high school guidance counselors, other counselors or mental health professionals, people who use these books and make recommendations to parents," he said.

"When multiple reviews are submitted, I will post what I judge to be the best, most informative reviews," he said. "People also could submit multiple reviews for different books."

Ironically, Smith admits self-help books for parents are not always necessary.

"They usually have titles that suggest that parent-adolescent relationships are full of conflict and that there's this inevitable generation gap. The research shows that not to be true," he said.

"There's not much support for the idea that adolescence is full of angst, turmoil and conflict. I'm the parent of two teens, and I live this everyday. I know there is conflict, upheaval and turmoil, but most work out their relationships in healthy ways. That's not what sells these books," he said. "Parents feel they need expert guidance to get through and survive these years."