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Book ReviewsUnequal Childhoods: Class, Race and Family Life. Annette Lareau. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2003. 331
pages. Paper.In this ethnographic account of the current dynamics of family life,
Lareau convincingly argues that social class produces both blatant
and covert differences in the way children are raised, with potential
long-term effects on a childs potential to succeed in American society.
Building on initial observations of 88 third and fourth grade children
from middle-class, working-class and poor families, the study team
selected twelve racially diverse families across these three socioeconomic classes for intensive observations. Each family was visited
about 20 times over a month-long period. During these 2 to 3 hour
visits, the study team observed and conversed with the parents, target
children, and siblings to explore whether the life experiences of the
nine and ten year old children were shaped by their social location.The book is divided into three sections. The first section chronicles
the pace of daily life for these children and their families; the second
section examines the varied use of language within the home; and, the
final section investigates the ability of parents to influence the larger
institutions that affect their children. Within each section, individual
chapters detail the pattern of life for a specific family. Encasing these
stories are two introductory chapters that summarize the core class
differences in child rearing beliefs and practices that emerged; and, a
final chapter analyzing how these class differences in parenting strategies originated and their implications for future policy. The author
includes some useful appendices that provide a concise description of
the studys methodology and a valuable discussion of the inherent
challenges of ethnography that should be of great interest to students
and scholars engaged in qualitative research.In the introductory chapters, we learn that the influence of social
class on childhood emanates from two distinct parenting strategies:
the concerted cultivation approach of middle-class parents and the fa-Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Vol. 25(2), Summer 2004 2004 Human Sciences Press, Inc.271272cilitation of natural growth approach of working class and poor parents. After introducing and defining these concepts, the second chapter provides the background for the study and elucidates some of the
ways in which social inequality restricts the type of schooling and parenting that...