Democratic babies? Françoise Dolto,Benjamin Spock and the ideology of post-war parenting advice

ABSTRACT

This article looks at the political implications of a subject not always thought of as directly political, but which has an important ideological component: child-rearing advice. The period after 1945 offers an important example of how this topic can interact with developments in political ideology. This article takes the example of France, with substantial comparative reference to the US and Britain. It argues that the mid-twentieth century was characterized by a move from a hygienist and behaviourist approach to child rearing to a more liberal, humanist approach informed by Freudian psychoanalysis. This occurred significantly later in France – in the 1970s – than in Britain or the US, where it is associated with the years immediately after World War II. Through a comparison of two celebrated childcare experts who epitomized the change – Françoise Dolto in France, Benjamin Spock in the US – the paper explores the reasons for this temporal discrepancy. It shows that Anglo-American experts believed that the widespread application of psychoanalytic theory would help produce democratic citizens and ward off the dangers of authoritarian personalities. In France, psychoanalytic approaches became allied with conservative Catholic views of the family and women’s roles, with implications for family policy into the twenty-first century.     

Why justice matters

The starting point of ‘Justice Matters’ is simple: the criminal justice system is far too big; far too costly; far too intrusive. Far from being a means of delivering social justice, it is the cause of much social injustice. The large footprint in society occupied by the combined criminal justice institutions is profoundly socially harmful.     

Australia and China： A Joint Report on the Bilateral Relationship

The authors of this article believe that all sectors should play an active role in supporting serious,mature discussions about how to improve bilateral relations and expand areas of cooperation based on mutual acknowledgement of differences and disagreements.Regular face-to-face contact at all levels is also necessary.     

Types of Theatre Information and Marketing-Audience Development Among the Alienated

Findings concerning audience development for the Performing Arts among the alienated are presented and discussed. The effects of different types of information upon attitude formation of the alienated toward the Performing Arts were investigated. The most effective type of information in forming positive attitudes toward the Performing Arts among the alienated was explaining how the individual can gain immediate benefits through supporting the theatre. Information that explained how the society would benefit in the future from support of the Performing Arts was much less effective in forming positive attitudes among the alienated. These findings are significant because the size of the potential audience among the alienated is large and growing, and because the alienated are in a position to be particularly able to benefit from the Performing Arts.