Decades of research have demonstrated that the parent-child dyad and the environment of the familyâ€"which includes all primary caregiversâ€"are at the foundation of children's well- being and healthy development. From birth, children are learning and rely on parents and the other caregivers in their lives to protect and care for them. The impact of parents may never be greater than during the earliest years of life, when a child's brain is rapidly developing and when nearly all of her or his experiences are created and shaped by parents and the family environment. Parents help children build and refine their knowledge and skills, charting a trajectory for their health and well-being during childhood and beyond. The experience of parenting also impacts parents themselves. For instance, parenting can enrich and give focus to parents' lives; generate stress or calm; and create any number of emotions, including feelings of happiness, sadness, fulfillment, and anger. Parenting of young children today takes place in the context of significant ongoing developments. These include: a rapidly growing body of science on early childhood, increases in funding for programs and services for families, changing demographics of the U.S. population, and greater diversity of family structure. Additionally, parenting is increasingly being shaped by technology and increased access to information about parenting. Parenting Matters identifies parenting knowledge, attitudes, and practices associated with positive developmental outcomes in children ages 0-8; universal/preventive and targeted strategies used in a variety of settings that have been effective with parents of young children and that support the identified knowledge, attitudes, and practices; and barriers to and facilitators for parents' use of practices that lead to healthy child outcomes as well as their participation in effective programs and services. This report makes recommendations directed at an array of stakeholders, for promoting the wide-scale adoption of effective programs and services for parents and on areas that warrant further research to inform policy and practice. It is meant to serve as a roadmap for the future of parenting policy, research, and practice in the United States.

Blend of theory and practice, with pointers for applying the principles and case studies illustrating how to apply them.

All parents experience stress as they attempt to meet the challenges of caring for their children. This comprehensive book examines the causes and consequences of parenting distress, drawing on a wide array of findings in current empirical research. Kirby Deater-Deckard explores normal and pathological parenting stress, the influences of parents on their children as well as children on their parents, and the effects of biological and environmental factors. Beginning with an overview of theories of stress and coping, Deater-Deckard goes on to describe how parenting stress is linked with problems in adult and child health (emotional problems, developmental disorders, illness); parental behaviors (warmth, harsh discipline); and factors outside the family (marital quality, work roles, cultural influences). The book concludes with a useful review of coping strategies and interventions that have been demonstrated to alleviate parenting stress.

With many children and adults affected by Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, researchers strive to improve our understanding of the causes, consequences, and treatment of the disorder. This volume examines some of the broad arrays of research in the field of ADHD, from etiology to cutting-edge interventions. The 16 chapters explore topics ranging from comorbidity to advances in the search for biomarkers; to executive, cognitive, and social functioning; to the use of new and alternative therapies. Both the professional and the casual reader alike will find something of interest, whether learning about ADHD for the first time or looking for inspiration for new research questions or potential interventions.

Aggressive behavior among children and adolescents has confounded parents and perplexed professionals—especially those tasked with its treatment and prevention—for countless years. As baffling as these behaviors are, however, recent advances in neuroscience focusing on brain development have helped to make increasing sense of their complexity. Focusing on their most prevalent forms, Oppositional Defiant Disorder and Conduct Disorder, Disruptive Behavior Disorders advances the understanding of DBD on a number of significant fronts. Its neurodevelopmental emphasis within an ecological approach offers links between brain structure and function and critical environmental influences and the development of these specific disorders. The book's findings and theories help to differentiate DBD within the contexts of normal development, non-pathological misbehavior and non-DBD forms of pathology. Throughout these chapters are myriad implications for accurate identification, effective intervention and future cross-disciplinary study. Key issues covered include: Gene-environment interaction models. Neurobiological processes and brain functions. Callous-unemotional traits and developmental pathways. Relationships between gender and DBD. Multiple pathways of familial transmission. Disruptive Behavior Disorders is a groundbreaking resource for researchers, scientist-practitioners and graduate students in clinical child and school psychology, psychiatry, educational psychology, prevention science, child mental health care, developmental psychology and social work.

A Guide to Best Practice in Special Education, Health and Social Care explores and explains the changes in governmental policies across the education, health and social care services, and what they mean for young individuals, parents and professionals. In a period of significant change, many practitioners need to understand the government’s plans for bringing about a more efficient, effective and sustainable system to meet the needs of young people and their families. Without trawling through reviews, green papers, white papers and bills, this book not only explains the significance of recent events, but provides practical examples, in the form of conversations and case studies, about how parents and professionals are making change happen. With decades of experience, Rona Tutt and Paul Williams delve deep into the separate origins of the three strands – the SEND Review, the review of children’s social care, and the Health and Care Act 2022. The book explores how pupils in different types of schools can have their needs met more effectively; how to make better use of available resources; and how to create a culture of mutual respect across all the three services. A Guide to Best Practice in Special Education, Health and Social Care not only fills in gaps in readers’ knowledge about the working of all three services, but provides innovative examples of how change is happening at ground level. People of all age groups working in schools and seeking to enhance their knowledge will find it to be an essential read. It will also be of interest to parents and professionals from across health and social care.

Parents of kids and teens with ADD or ADHD often struggle with the myths and stigma surrounding their child''s condition. This book has a clinical and scientific background with a positive, strength based approach to bring you 7 simple steps to succeed with ADD. Dr. Handelman shares that there is not always a deficit in attention with ADD, rather there are differences. As he writes: " One of the themes of this book is to take your child''s deficits and turn them into differences, and then turn those differences into strengths." -back cover-