Strategic storytelling: UVA prof says parents can help children edit life’s narratives

What story do your kids tell themselves about why they do the things they do? It’s a question that’s critical for children’s wellbeing, according to UVA psychology professor Tim Wilson. Wilson, a social psychologist, says people can improve their lives by controlling and editing their internal narrative. For example, if a new college student tanks […]

Whither modern dad: Does nurturing daughters make men nuts?

Like most parents, I spend an inordinate amount of time worrying about how the various things I do might impact my daughter’s emotional and intellectual development because, thanks to social science research, I know that everything I think is good is actually bad. I’m told, for example, I can’t tell my very smart daughter she’s […]

Hello, two! Saying goodbye to my only child

Before the birth of my second child in December, I was worried of the impact it would have on my firstborn, June, now 3. I was afraid she wouldn’t do well with a new baby in the house. Up until that point, June had been the center of everything—the object of all our love, devotion, […]

Kid’s best friend: Flocks of love

Having worked toward becoming a veterinarian since she was 3, when she started pulling lambs, 10-year-old Sadie Wentz already has a head start on some of her less-industrious peers. She’s the proud owner of 13 Suffolk-Hampshire Cross sheep, a 900-pound steer, and two dogs, and is responsible for everything from delivering baby lambs to treating […]