The Self-Esteem Trap Raising Confident and Compassionate Kids in an Age of Self-Importance

Kids today are depressed and anxious. They also seem to feel entitled to every advantage and unwilling to make the leap into adulthood. As Polly Young-Eisendrath makes clear in this brilliant account of where a generation has gone astray, parents trying to make their children feel special are unwittingly interfering with their kids' ability to accept themselves and cope with life. Clarifying an enormous cultural change, Polly Young-Eisendrath demonstrates why so many young people have trouble with empathy and compassion, struggle with moral values, and are stymied in the face of adversity. Now in paperback, THE SELF-ESTEEM TRAP is a call to action and a prescriptive guide for parents, teaching them how they can help kids--through the teen and young adult years--develop self-worth, setting them on the right track to productive, balanced, and happy lives.

Polly Young-Eisendrath, a Jungian analyst and psychotherapist, is the author of 13 books (translated into 20 languages), including The Resilient Spirit and Women and Desire. She lives in Burlington, VT.