Hailed as “an absolute must-read” (Jean Twenge) and a book that “will change your kids’ lives” (Jack Canfield), UnSelfie by Dr. Michele Borba explains what parents and educators MUST do to combat the growing empathy crisis among children today—including a 9-step empathy-building program with tips to guide kids from birth through college, and beyond.
Teens today are forty percent less empathetic than they were thirty years ago. Why is a lack of empathy—which goes hand-in-hand with the self-absorption epidemic Dr. Michele Borba calls the Selfie Syndrome—so dangerous? First, it hurts kids’ academic performance and leads to bullying behaviors. Also, it correlates with more cheating and less resilience. And once children grow up, a lack of empathy hampers their ability to collaborate, innovate, and problem-solve—all must-have skills for the global economy.
In UnSelfie Dr. Borba pinpoints the forces causing the empathy crisis and shares a revolutionary, researched-based, nine-step plan for reversing it.
The good news? Empathy is a trait that can be taught and nurtured. Dr. Borba offers a framework for parenting that yields the results we all want: successful, happy kids who also are kind, moral, courageous, and resilient. UnSelfie is a blueprint for parents and educators who want to kids shift their focus from I, me, and mine…to we, us, and ours.
Michele Borba, EdD, is an internationally renowned educational psychologist and an expert in parenting, bullying, and character development. One of the foremost authorities on childhood development in the country, she is a regular NBC contributor who appears regularly on Today and has been featured as an expert on Dateline, The View, Dr. Phil, NBC Nightly News, Fox & Friends, Dr. Oz, and The Early Show, among many others. She lives in Palm Springs, California, with her husband, and she is the mother of three grown sons.
Table of Contents
Introduction-The Hidden Advantage of Empathy and Why It Matters for Our Children xi
Part 1 Developing Empathy
Chapter 1 Empathetic Children Can Recognize Feelings Teaching Emotional Literacy 3
Chapter 2 Empathetic Children Have a Moral Identity Developing an Ethical Code 25
Chapter 3 Empathetic Children Understand the Needs of Others Instilling Perspective Taking and Learning to Walk in Another's Shoes 47
Chapter 4 Empathetic Children Have a Moral Imagination Reading to Cultivate Empathy 73
Part 2 Practicing Empathy
Chapter 5 Empathetic Children Can Keep Their Cool Managing Strong Emotions and Mastering Self-Regulation 95
Chapter 6 Empathetic Children Practice Kindness Developing and Exercising Compassion Every Day 119
Chapter 7 Empathetic Children Think "Us" Not "Them" Cultivating Empathy Through Teamwork and Collaboration 141
Part 3 Living Empathy
Chapter 8 Empathetic Children Stick Their Necks Out Promoting Moral Courage 169
Chapter 9 Empathetic Children Want to Make a Difference Growing Changemakers and Altruistic Leaders 191
Epilogue The Empathy Advantage: The Seven Most Creative Ways to Give Children the Edge They Need to Succeed 215
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