Neufeld, Dr. Gordon: Hold on to Your Kids
The economic and cultural changes that have occurred in North American society in the past fifty or so years have resulted in today’s children looking to and associating with their peers, instead of their parents, for direction; for a sense of right and wrong; and for values, identity, and codes of behavior. This peer orientation works to undermine family cohesion. It interferes with healthy development and fosters a sexualized youth culture in which children lose their individuality and tend to become conformist, desensitized and alienated.
These concepts—and what to do about them to develop strong families and emotionally healthy children—are explained in the book “Hold on to Your Kids: Why Parents Need to Matter More Than Peers,“ by Gordon Neufeld, Ph.D. and Gabor Mate, M.D.
When I spoke with Dr. Gordon Neufeld from his home in Vancouver, British Columbia, we began our conversation with a discussion of the importance of developing an attachment between the adult caregiver and the child, beginning at infancy.
Dr. Gordon Neufeld is the author of “Hold on to Your Kids: Why Parents Need to Matter More Than Peers. The book he recommends is “The Anatomy of Dependence,” by Takeo Doi.
This interview was originally broadcast on October 25, 2005. More information about Dr. Neufeld’s work may be found on his website, www.GordonNeufeld.com.
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