The Irreducible Needs of Children

Starred review from October 2, 2000
Pediatrician Brazelton (Touchpoints) and child psychiatrist Greenspan (Building Healthy Minds) join together to present a hard-hitting treatise on what children really need from their parents and from society. While the text is densely written, it is engaging. The two childcare experts share the mutually strong conviction that society is not currently meeting the basic needs of children. Each chapter is devoted to the discussion of an "irreducible" need, such as the Need for Ongoing Nurturing Relationships, the Need for Physical Protection, Safety and Regulation, the Need for Stable Supportive Communities and Cultural Continuity, and the Need to Protect the Future. After each discussion, the authors recommend ways to meet these needs. For instance, Brazelton and Greenspan examine how day care shortchanges children in America and make detailed recommendations on what is needed to improve the situation, such as better training, higher wages and continuity of care. Also powerful are their comments on educational issues and the need for an expanded role by schools and healthcare systems. Policy makers, health-care professionals, educators and parents will find this a thought-provoking but demanding read that poses incisive questions about the way we raise, educate and care for our children. Brazelton and Greenspan offer viable, intelligent solutions to a full deck of problems faced by our country as well as by the global community.