A Field Guide to Boys and Girls: Differences, Similarities: Cutting Edge Information Every Parent Needs to Know

by Susan Gilbert

Book Overview

A Field Guide to Boys and Girls is the only book to answer these common questions and many others, addressing the special needs of boys and girls all in one volume. Susan Gilbert offers a fresh examination, based on the latest research, of the topic of gender development, showing that there are in fact natural differences between boys and girls -- and how parents can use this information to raise their children the best way possible (a "Suggestions for Parents" section ends each chapter). Looking at the stages boys and girls go through from fetal development to adolescence, Susan Gilbert tells parents things about their children they might never have known -- for example, that boys cry more frequently, and that girls make more eye contact, eliciting more conversation from parents, a fact that allows girls to speak earlier than boys. Outlining the differences simply and clearly, Susan Gilbert shows parents how to nurture the areas in boys and girls that may be slower to develop, such as math skills in girls and language skills in boys, and how to deal with the challenges they face as their children grow up. As pioneering gender researcher Carol Nagy Jackson, Ph.D., says in her foreword, "Scientists have not always been able to translate their findings into usable information for the general public.... This 'field guide' provides a missing link." In talking to a variety of educators, psychologists, and behavioral pediatricians, Susan Gilbert has amassed all the most important current thinking and practices on gender, translating the findings into easy-to-use advice. A Field Guide to Boys and Girls is a vital tool that no parent can afford not to read.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0060193719
• ISBN13: 9780060193713
• Release Date: November 2000
• Publisher: Harper
• Length: 272 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.1" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

Concise, clear, and scientific . NOT SEXIST.

I'm shocked by the reviewer who blasted this book about it's sexist bias. I find it interesting that a "strong" feminist woman should be so threatened by finding that there ARE biological and cultural differences in males and females. Odd. I mean, we are differing genders. Where the difficulty falls is that "traditional" cultural interpretations place women's attributes as weaker or less desirable. I notice the trend is now to refuse to acknowledge differences, rather than to fight the labeling of those differences. In reference to this work, the author specifically mentions this bias, and provides tips on how to counteract this in the home. Also, she provides scientific data (at least she cites it; like the previous reviewer, I'd like to see the referenced studies myself) and personal observations which both confirm AND contradict the general gender trends. I fail to see how this is sexist and confining to women. Lastly, this is a reassuring and helpful book for anyone curious as to what the current (or at least recent) scientific studies are revealing about gender, developmental studies, and education theory. A useful, accessible, yet strangely in-depth book, and I highly recommend it.

I highly recommend this book.

I recommend this book to would-be parents and those interested in child development.I picked up this book while on vacation and thoroughly enjoyed reading it. It helped me look at child development in a completely different way. Susan Gilbert summarizes current hypotheses and findings in a way that I found logical and interesting. The most important point that I think she makes is that ?when observing groups of boys and girls, researchers are bound to see more variation in gender-typed behavior between the individuals than between the boys as a group compared to the girls as a group.? As Gilbert says, "when it comes to gender-typed behavior, most children don't fit the mold. Even when researchers find differences between boys and girls, the differences are fairly minor and it's often fewer than half the children who skew the results... For example, one gender difference is that boys play rougher than girls, meaning that they're more likely to pummel, wrestle, and mock-fight each other. According to one study, even this difference is not so great. It's a relatively small number of the boys--15 to 20 percent who score higher than any of the girls in assessments of rough-and-tumble play. So, most boys and girls fall in the same range. ... Those of us who are doing fieldwork everyday--that is, parents observing our children--are bound to see more variation between any two children, regardless of their sex, than we'll see between a group of boys and a group of girls."My only criticism of the book is that like many books written for the layperson it doesn't have a comprehensive list of references to the studies quoted in the book. On the plus side, Carol Nagy Jacklin, Ph.D. endorses the book: she is Professor Emeritus of the Department of Psychology, University of Southern California. The reputable Dr. Jacklin praises Gilbert's research in the foreword. However as a scientist, I feel that I must verify Gilbert's research and conclusions through reading additional sources.

A MUST HAVE FOR PARENTS RAISING BOTH BOYS AND GIRLS

THIS IS AN EASY TO READ BOOK THAT GIVES A VERY DOWN TO EARTH PERSPECTIVE ON ALL THE ISSUES THAT SEEM TO BE GENDER SPECIFIC. THE BOOK DOES NOT ADVOCATE ANY SPECIFIC CHILDHOOD THEORIES BUT GIVES A VERY BALANCED REVIEW. LIKE A GOOD CONVERSATION WITH EXPERIENCED PARENTS AND PEDIATRICIANS.