Product Description

In The Optimistic Child, Dr. Martin E. P. Seligman offers parents, teachers, and coaches a well-validated program to prevent depression in children. In a thirty-year study, Seligman and his colleagues discovered the link between pessimism -- dwelling on the most catastrophic cause of any setback -- and depression. Seligman shows adults how to teach children the skills of optimism that can help them combat depression, achieve more on the playing field and at school, and improve their physical health.

As Seligman states in his new afterword for this edition, "Teaching children optimism is more, I realized, than just correcting pessimism . . . It is the creation of a positive strength, a sunny but solid future-mindedness that can be deployed throughout life -- not only to fight depression and to come back from failure, but also to be the foundation of success and vitality."

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #5635 in Books
• Published on: 2007-09-17
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 352 pages

Review
"The Optimistic Child could be the most significant parenting book in years." (Dallas Morning News )

"In clear, concise prose peppered with anecdotes, dialogues, cartoons and exercises, Seligman offers a concrete plan of action based on techniques of self-evaluation and social interaction...this encouraging volume moves beyond popular self-help tomes and ideology to offer hope and practical suggestions; it will be of great value to teachers as well [as parents]." (Publishers Weekly )

About the Author
Martin E. P. Seligman, Ph.D., is a professor of psychology at the University of Pennsylvania. He is the author of several books, including Learned Optimism and Authentic Happiness. He is past president of the American Psychological Association as well as the division of clinical psychology of the American Psychological Association, and former director of clinical training in psychology at the University of Pennsylvania.

Customer Reviews

Excellent book
I had read this author's book "Learned Optimism" which was oriented to adults. The Optimistic Child gives an emphasis to the parent-child relationship instead which is a great addition to his prior work. I found it a little more technical in its writing than the adult version, but not too difficult to read. I highly recommend it for parents trying to help their children to be positive and optimistic in life.