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Issue Title: Special Issue: Longitudinal Studies Exploring the Trajectories, Outcomes, and Sources of Adolescents' Depressive Symptoms
J Youth Adolescence (2013) 42:13081311 DOI 10.1007/s10964-013-9944-2
BOOK REVIEW
Leonard Sax: Girls on the Edge: The Four Factors Driving the New Crisis For Girls
Basic Books Publishing, New York, NY, 2011, 272 pp, ISBN: 978-0465022069
Marilyn Welton
Received: 24 March 2013 / Accepted: 25 March 2013 / Published online: 6 April 2013 Springer Science+Business Media New York 2013
In Girls on the Edge: The Four Factors Driving the New Crisis for Girls, Dr. Leonard Sax examines the world in which adolescent girls are growing up and acknowledges how and why this world is negatively inuencing their development of a sense of self. Todays adolescents are growing up in an unparalleled time and culture, and it seems as though girls have more opportunities. However, Sax explores the ways in which certain opportunities can put girls at risk physically, socially, and emotionally. This book shows that todays world is not the same world of previous generations, or even the same world girls grew up in 10 years ago. Girls on the Edge provides insight into the challenges girls face and some of the unspoken rules that exist.
Girls on the Edge is helpful not only in helping people understand girl world better but also in giving practical advice on how to reduce negative societal effects and actively help girls develop in a healthy manner. Sax draws on his experience as a family physician and psychologist, in addition to relevant research, to provide evidence and create a clear message for readers. The four factors Sax identies as having a role in inhibiting girls sense of who they are as a person are sexual identity, the cyberbubble, obsessions, and environmental toxins. He discusses each of these factors in the rst part of the book. The second half of the book focuses on solutions to these problems in the form of the healthy development of mind, body, and spirit. This book would be an aid to anyone seeking to learn more about the development of adolescent girls or those who wish\s to help with their development.
The rst chapter explores the rst factor Sax has identied: sexual identity. He concisely sums up the chapter in the rst sentence: Girls are getting sexier earlier. Thats not a good thing (p. 11). He explains that girls today are expected to dress and act in a sexual way starting at a very young age, often before they have any sexual agenda or even feel sexual. He gives the example of young girls wanting to wear sexualized Halloween costumes that young girls never would have worn 20 years ago. Sax explains that most girls do not feel that there are other options of how to dress; they simply are conforming to societys expectations. However, just because girls are dressing in a more provocative manner does not necessarily mean that they want to engage in sexual behavior, and this leads to problems with sexual intimacy. Sax looks at popular media such as Twilight and Taylor Swift. He argues that these forms of current entertainment revert back to more traditional gender roles of males being more dominant and females more submissive. However, he explains that, unlike when these traditional roles existed, women are no longer necessarily the gatekeepers to sexual activity. Girls today are no longer proud of virginity, and sex is no longer seen as such a big deal. He gives advice to parents that they must be willing to be the bad guy and take control of what their daughters choose to wear. The chapter ends with a discussion on lesbian sexual identity, and the increasing popularity of two girls engaging in sexual intimacy in todays culture. Sax explains that, while girls are much more uid in their sexual identity than boys, he is worried for those girls who choose to engage in sexual intimacy with a girl for the purpose of appealing to boys. However, he also offers an alternate explanation in the idea that because boys are less mature than girls and because boys are increasingly turning to pornography rather than relationships, girls might be choosing to be
M. Welton (&)
Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA e-mail: [email protected]
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lesbian. The chapter ends by explaining that the overall expectation of girls to act sexually before they are ready can lead to sexual confusion in terms of their sexual identity.
The next chapter looks at the cyberbubble in which so many girls nd themselves. More and more girls are spending a considerable amount of time on social networking sites such as Facebook. Sax recalls one girl he knew saying that time spent on Facebook is like writing in a diary, except even more social. Sax explained that, while at rst that may sound true, writing in a diary is something done for the individual person and allows a person to freely explore their personal feelings. The time a girl spends on Facebook expressing herself is really time spent putting on the persona her friends would like. This is not unknown to some girls, as they will say the way people portray themselves on Facebook is fake. Some parents think that spending more time with technology will better prepare their children for the future. However, Sax argues that the activities on Facebook are hardly workplace skills, and that girls who spend lots of time on social networking sites are no more likely to do better in school than a girl who is never online at home. Further, Sax has observed that the cyberbubble has hindered real social skills. Texting has replaced talking, which can lead to reduced conversational skills. The cyberbubble has created a world in which girls can be connected with their peers at all times. This means that they have no time to themselves. Sax argues that parents should take on Diana Baumrinds authoritative parenting style to nd the balance their child needs. In terms of the cyberbubble, Sax recommends keeping the computer in a public space, making sure that the child knows the computer is a privilege, and that the child knows the parent will be monitoring her activity. He gives examples of software that can be used to keep track of and block websites. He goes on to discuss how technology also has resulted in new phenomena such as cyber bullying and sexting. These phenomena can be harmful, for a variety of reasons. But the cyberbubble is problematic in other key ways, such as the manner it provides a place for girls to create a persona for the public, without really knowing who they are. Sax argues that the cyberbubble can contribute to girls confusion and a lack of a true sense of self.
The third chapter deals with obsessions. Sax proposes that, because of the problems created by a confused sexual identity and the cyberbubble, many girls form obsessions in order to nd something real they can use to dene themselves. Rather than knowing who they are as a whole, they use one thing to identify themselves such as the thin girl or the athletic girl. These obsessions can appear in the form of eating disorders, cutting, drug and alcohol abuse, or even in seemingly healthy activities like sports and school. He goes on to give stories about patients he has
met. One girl struggled with anorexia, and another was such an extreme runner she caused damage to her body. Another girl dened herself solely on her intellectual ability, and another abused alcohol. These obsessions are extremely unhealthy on their own, both mentally and physically. However, Sax demonstrates that when girls can no longer identify themselves through this obsession, a devastating blow to girls sense of self can occur. If a girl denes herself using only one aspect, there is no room for failure, even if it is out of her control. He gives the example of the girl who dened herself through her intellectual ability. She had planned on going to a specic college since she was little, and did everything she could to make sure she would be admitted. However, when she was denied admission it took a prescription to Xanax to calm her down. She went to another prestigious school, but could not handle the pressure when she was not the best in all of her classes. She ended up dropping out of college. Sax ends the chapter by rmly instilling the idea that girls must know who they are, and not knowing who they are makes them extremely vulnerable to developing an obsession.
The next chapter considers the nal factor Sax identies as placing girls on the edge: environmental toxins. Sax states that the childhood of girls is getting increasingly briefer due to earlier beginnings of puberty. There are many obstacles girls can face with an early onset of puberty. For example, they are more at risk for eating disorders, sexual abuse, delinquent behavior, anxiety, depression, heart disease, breast cancer, and being over-weight. He argues that, while it might be considered normal, girls are beginning puberty as early as the age of seven. He suggests that the factors contributing to early puberty could be unhealthy. Sax identies environmental toxins as potential, major contributors to the early onset of puberty. He argues that BPA and phthalates are endocrine disrupting chemicals that need to be avoided. Endocrine disrupting chemicals are fat-soluble. This means that the more fat a girl has, the more of these chemicals she stores. Avoiding these toxins, or any unwanted hormones, could play a role in delaying puberty in girls. Sax then goes on to explain that another contributing factor to when a girl begins puberty is whether there is a biological father in the house. Girls with an absent biological father tend to start puberty earlier than girls with a biological father who is present. By examining these factors, Sax brings together, in a thought-provoking manner, important information that will be familiar to developmental psychologists but useful for a broader audience to know and appreciate.
The fth chapter focuses on solutions to these problems involving the mind. Sax says that there are all sorts of ideas on how to create intellectual children, or how to jumpstart their knowledge. However, he argues that earlier does not necessarily mean better. Children need to be doing
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developmentally appropriate activities. He claries that this means hands on learning until about the age of seven, and at that point book learning can be introduced. He nds it important for children to want to learn, and that if we force them too early they might not regard school in a positive way. Sax recommends delaying starting school until the child is developmentally ready, therefore reducing the risk that they could be labeled as ADHD. He then goes on to explain that girls tend to learn in different ways than boys. As a result, many of the teaching methods used in schools can be better suited for boys, and girls may fail to nd their interest. He advocates all-girl schools, citing studies that found same-sex schools to be benecial both academically and socially. However, he concludes that overall the best schools for girls are those with teachers who genuinely care about the girls.
The next chapter focuses on solutions involving the body. Sax discusses the positive and negative aspects of having girls engage in sports, and the best types of sports for girls to play. He emphasizes that the instruction girls receive in athletics, from their gym teacher or their coach, is extremely important. We want girls to engage in exercise and enjoy these activities. Sax recommends volleyball, eld hockey, swimming, and archery as good choices for sports because they emphasize what girls are doing rather than how they look (compared to sports like cheerleading). He does not believe that girls should specialize in a sport too early, play one sport year round, or only play sports involving the same muscle groups. However, Sax recognizes that not all girls want to be involved in team sports and he notes that they should be given the choice of activities like yoga or martial arts. He goes on to discuss that there are very real differences between girls bodies and the bodies of the males who also play these sports. He focuses on concussions, and the fact that female college athletes have a greater risk of getting a concussion than their male counterparts playing the same sport. Sax recommends avoiding the highest risk sports like gymnastics, and also ensuring that coaches have adequate training. Overall, Sax recommends that parents help their children reach their physical potential, but in a way that is healthy and works for the child.
The nal chapter focuses on cultivation of the spirit. Sax acknowledges that this can be an uncomfortable topic. However, he argues that if a girl has not discovered spirituality she will replace it with sexuality. He says that parents have the most inuence on the spiritual development of children. Girls who are more spiritual or religious tend to be healthier than girls who are not spiritual or religious. Spirituality is also shown to inuence how girls feel about themselves physically. Girls who are more spiritual tend to be happier with their physical appearance. Sax recommends that parents teach their children how to
pray, regardless of whether they are a religious person. Further, he argues, parents need to help their children nd their own spirituality. He explains the importance of community, specically a community of women for girls. Girls need the chance to learn from and talk with older women so that they can learn how to become women. Girls today spend so much time with girls their own age, and there needs to be time for generations of women to spend together. This chapter emphasizes that, while the mind and body are extremely important, the spirit is just as important and is too often forgotten.
This book provides a truly insightful and intriguing look at the world of todays adolescent girls. It is sensitive to their thoughts, choices, and behavior, which is incredibly important for the older generations trying to help, but who literally cannot relate or understand certain issues or situations. Many girls today do seem to live in a world with more opportunities than their mothers or grandmothers, however they also have a whole new set of social, emotional, and physical barriers to acknowledge and overcome. This book provides a refreshingly honest portrayal of female adolescent development, and offers practical advice and solutions. As such, it helps bring to life research from developmental science and serves as an example of how to make good use of cutting-edge research relating to girls, such as growing research on the negative effects of girls pubertal timing (Stattin et al. 2011; DeRose et al. 2011), concerns about girls weight (Huh et al. 2012), pressures relating to girls academic achievement (Leaper et al. 2011), and the effect of family structure on girls sexual development (Shulman et al. 2012). While not an all encompassing how to guide, the book likely can help parents see the world from their childs point of view. While the ideas and advice may not be true for everyone, it is a great supplementary book for parents and adults working with adolescents. Parents play a pivotal role in the development of their children, and this book certainly could help them with the process.
References
DeRose, L. M., Shiyko, M. P., Foster, H., & Brooks-Gunn, J. (2011). Associations between menarcheal timing and behavioral developmental trajectories for girls from age 6 to age 15. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 40, 13291342.
Huh, D., Stice, E., Shaw, H., & Boutelle, K. (2012). Female overweight and obesity in adolescence: Developmental trends and ethnic differences in prevalence, incidence, and remission. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 41, 7685.
Leaper, C., Farkas, T., & Brown, C. S. (2011). Adolescent girls experiences and gender-related beliefs in relation to their motivation in math/science and English. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 41, 268282.
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Shulman, S., Zlotnik, A., Shachar-Shapira, L., Connolly, J., & Bohr,Y. (2012). Adolescent daughters romantic competence: The role of divorce, quality of parenting, and maternal romantic history. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 41, 593606.
Stattin, H., Kerr, M., & Skoog, T. (2011). Early pubertal timing and girls problem behavior: Integrating two hypotheses. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 40, 12711287.
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Springer Science+Business Media New York 2013