Columbia University
Professor of History at Columbia University and director of its American Cultures Program; author of Huck's Raft: A History of American Childhood and Domestic Revolutions: A Social History of American Family Life
PROFILE
Steven Mintz
Guest
FROM Steven Mintz
Which Way, L.A.?
Are American Kids Spoiled Rotten? A recent issue of the New Yorker magazine contains the comment: "With the exception of the imperial offspring of the Ming dynasty and the dauphins of pre-revolutionary France, contemporary American kids may represent the most indulged young people in the history of the world." Too many toys, too few chores and mothers and fathers who doubt their own authority: is "parental hysteria" producing "a nation of wimps?" Why are so many college graduates going back home instead of venturing into the job market and building their own families? Is it time to give up "helicopter parenting" and leave kids alone so they can learn to fend for themselves, or is the millennial generation facing a historic transformation in what it takes to become a successful adult and maintain roots in the middle class?
To the Point
Are American Kids Spoiled Rotten? A recent issue of the New Yorker magazine contains the comment: "With the exception of the imperial offspring of the Ming dynasty and the dauphins of pre-revolutionary France, contemporary American kids may represent the most indulged young people in the history of the world." Too many toys, too few chores and mothers and fathers who doubt their own authority: is "parental hysteria" producing "a nation of wimps?" Why are so many college graduates going back home instead of venturing into the job market and building their own families? Is it time to give up "helicopter parenting" and leave kids alone so they can learn to fend for themselves, or is the millennial generation facing a historic transformation in what it takes to become a successful adult and maintain roots in the middle class?
To the Point
Are American Kids Spoiled Rotten? Last week's issue of the New Yorker magazine contains this comment: "With the exception of the imperial offspring of the Ming dynasty and the dauphins of pre-revolutionary France, contemporary American kids may represent the most indulged young people in the history of the world." With too many toys, too few chores and mothers and fathers who doubt their own authority, is "parental hysteria" producing " a nation of wimps ?" Why are so many college graduates going back home instead of venturing into the job market and building their own families? Is it time to give up "helicopter parenting" and leave kids alone so they can learn to fend for themselves, or is the millennial generation facing a historic transformation in what it takes to become a successful adult and maintain roots in the middle class?
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