Hurried Child Syndrome
Are children today being rushed into adulthood?
What is Hurried Child Syndrome?
Hurried Child Syndrome is an idea that was brought forth by psychologist David Elkind in his book, "The Hurried Child", which was published in 1981. Elkind believes that due to different ideals and societal expectations, children are being forced to grow up at an earlier age. There are many ways in which this is occurring. The one at the forefront of his studies is parents over scheduling their children in honors programs, sports, and activities. Parents are not spending time with their children or allowing their children to just simply be kids. Instead, these parents are signing their kids up for a full load of activities that their child doesn't even necessarily want to be a part of.
David Elkind, the psychologist behind Hurried Child Syndrome.
Technology and over scheduling is taking over our kids' lives.
Kids are more stressed than they have ever been.
How Added Stress is Affecting Our Children.
Alcohol abuse and drug use is on an upward climb. A recent study says that 70% of girls will not be virgins by the time they leave their teen years. 40% of these girls will become pregnant. About 10% of girls were sexually active in 1960. 5,000 teens commit suicide each year and those are just the ones who succeed. For every suicide completion, there are dozens more attempts. These teens are blaming their parents and society and the problem is just getting worse and worse. Parents are starting to hurry their children earlier and earlier. Starting their babies on programs to make them the smartest or the most talented. Many parents do this because they are stressed about their own lives and they wish to pass on the stress to someone else. Parents seem to forget that children need to be children, they must allow them to be.