Great Myths of Child Development (eBook)

Stephen Hupp is a Professor of Clinical Child and School Psychology at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. Dr. Hupp is also a Licensed Clinical Psychologist and consultant for the East St. Louis Head Start program. Jeremy Jewell is a Professor at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville and Director of the Clinical Child and School Psychology graduate program. Dr. Jewell was awarded the SIUE Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (URCA) Mentor Award in 2012.

Preface x

Introduction 1

1 Beginnings 9

#1 Identical twins have a telepathic connection that originates in the womb 10

#2 Couples dealing with infertility are more likely to get pregnant if they adopt 16

#3 Parents can predict the sex of a fetus by examining the shape of the mother's body 22

#4 All boys have one Y chromosome (and all girls don't) 27

#5 The attachment parenting approach strengthens the mother-infant bond 34

Speed busting for beginnings 41

#6 Identical twins have identical genes 41

#7 A woman who is already pregnant can't get pregnant again 42

#8 The Chinese lunar calendar accurately predicts the sex of a baby 42

#9 Female fetuses have faster heart rates than male fetuses 43

#10 Epidurals create a high risk of harm during delivery 43

#11 More babies are born during a full moon 44

#12 Pre-chewing a baby's food has no known risks 44

2 Growth, Body, & Mind 47

#13 Letting babies "cry it out" during bedtime is harmful to their development 48

#14 Sugar intake causes children to be hyperactive 55

#15 Using a baby walker will help a toddler walk sooner 60

#16 Showing cognitively stimulating videos to babies boosts their intelligence 65

#17 Using "baby talk" with an infant delays their ability to speak normally 71

#18 Vaccines caused the rise in autism diagnoses 77

Speed busting for growth, body, & mind 85

#19 A good response to stimulant medication is proof that a child has ADHD 85

#20 Requiring children to "clean their plates" promotes healthy eating habits 86

#21 Dyslexia's defining feature is letter reversal 86

#22 Most babies can learn to read with the right learning program 87

#23 Educational kinesiology promotes learning in children 87

#24 Facilitated communication is effective for children with autism 87

#25 Dolphin-assisted therapy effectively treats children with special needs 88

3 Emotions & Behavior 92

#26 Bed-wetting is a sign of serious emotional problems 93

#27 Most antidepressants for children with depression are approved by the FDA 99

#28 Drawings contain specific signs useful in identifying subconscious problems 106

#29 Most toddlers go through a "terrible twos" stage 115

#30 Kids can be "scared straight" from delinquency 122

Speed busting for emotions & behavior 129

#31 Parents can usually tell when their child is depressed 129

#32 Young girls are more likely to have clinical depression than young boys 130

#33 Helping children avoid their fears is the best way to decrease their anxiety 130

#34 Adults can usually tell if a child is lying 131

#35 Seeing other people be aggressive will decrease children's aggressive drive 131

#36 School homicides are on the rise 132

#37 Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) prevents drug use 132

4 Social Environment 135

#38 An "only child" is likely to be selfish, spoiled, and socially incompetent 136

#39 Divorce ruins most kids' lives 142

#40 If you "spare the rod" you will "spoil the child" 148

#41 Brief time-outs are too weak to help decrease real behavior problems 156

#42 Daycare damages the attachment between children and parents 162

#43 Imaginary friends are a sign of social-emotional problems in children 168

Speed busting for social environment 174

#44 Birth order is a powerful predictor of a child's personality 174

#45 The most common reason for sibling fights is the rivalry for parental love 174

#46 Parent-child relationship disruptions can be repaired with holding therapy 174

#47 Fathers use more corporal punishment than mothers 175

#48 Rewards usually decrease the desirable behavior they're intended to increase 175

#49 Praise undermines children's ability to be successful 176

#50 Parents were not permissive when I was a kid 177

Postscript: Closing Thoughts 180

Index 189

"the book is intriguing since it undertakes to question some widely held and strong beliefs, not only for parents who might read it but to the field of academic child development. Having studied children's development as a researcher, clinician, and parent, I found the questioning of "facts" refreshing and important and would recommend it as an additional reading for students interested in child development." (PsycCRITIQUES 2016)

One of the surprise pleasures of busting myths is encountering
those that I always thought were true, and so Great Myths of Child
Development provided me with a number of such surprises. Identical
twins are not genetically identical? A woman can get pregnant
during a pregnancy? Not all girls have XX sex chromosomes and not
all boys have XY chromosomes? Fathers don't use more corporal
punishment than mothers? These, and many more myths, are considered
with the best available science, instead of how most of us parents
do it by intuition, rumor, and word-of-mouth. This book should be
on every parent's nightstand and referenced every time you worry
that you might be doing something wrong.--Michael Shermer,
Publisher Skeptic magazine, monthly columnist Scientific
American, author of Why People Believe Weird Things,
The Believing Brain, and The Moral Arc

What everyone claims to "know" about child
development can be shown to simply not be so. To the rescue
comes this book, which can easily be consulted when we are
confronted by claims about child development that are accompanied
by "authoritative" pronouncements and scientifically
weak foundations. I suspect my copy will be well thumbed very
soon.--Patrick C. Friman, Ph.D., ABPP, Vice President of
Behavioral Health, Boys Town and Clinical Professor of Pediatrics,
UNMC

It's great to see this new addition to the sparse but
growing literature on popular misunderstandings of child
development. From the entertaining riff on Dr. Spock's advice
to the references to entertainment media, Great Myths of Child
Development is engaging, informative, and much needed.
Instructors will be pleased with the "speed busting"
sections, which can easily be used as assignments to be modeled on
the longer critiques.--Jean Mercer, Professor Emerita, Richard
Stockton College, Galloway NJ

Authors Hupp and Jewell systematically dissect and destroy 50
myths of child development that are too-often propagated in the
popular media and by well-intentioned child-rearing experts.
Most importantly, the authors don't just shoot down common
misconceptions, they offer concise recommendations and resources to
help readers make scientifically-informed child-rearing
decisions. As a research-based child psychologist, I hope
this book makes it into the hands of all parents, teachers,
coaches, and pediatricians.--Brett R. Kuhn, PhD., pediatric
psychologist and co-author of The Toddler Owner's Manual:
Operating Instructions, Trouble-shooting Tips, and Advice on System
Maintenance