Parenting the First Twelve Years: What the Evidence Tells Us (Pelican Books)

Concrete, research-driven advice on humanity's oldest, hardest job

Why is parenting so fraught and so difficult in today's society? There has never been a time when advice was so readily available, and yet there is also a prevailing sense that parents are getting it wrong. This book examines the arguments and counter-arguments supported by research on how best to parent children, from birth to twelve years. By taking an impartial approach to the evidence and, by discussing case studies from across the world and from a number of academic disciplines, this book is designed to show how good parenting comes in many shapes and forms.

Victoria Cooper is Senior Lecturer in Childhood and Youth Studies and Co-director of the Children's Research Centre at the Open University. As a social scientist her research interests broadly fall into three key areas; childhood identity, educational research methods and professional development in education.

Heather Montgomery is Reader in the Anthropology of Childhood at the Open University. She is a social anthropologist who conducted research in Thailand among young prostitutes and writes more generally on children's experiences of violence and vulnerability and also on children's rights.

Kieron Sheehy is Professor of Education and Innovation Pedagogies at the Open University. His international research and teaching encompasses examining the relationship between notions of learning, play and new technologies.