From texting and social networking sites to after-school activities, young people have many opportunities to interact with one another, and yet loneliness and isolation trouble today’s youth in increasing numbers. Many children and teens report feeling lonely even in the midst of family and friends, and childhood loneliness is a prime risk factor for adult alienation. Lonely Children and Adolescents: Self-Perceptions, Social Exclusion, and Hope illuminates seldom-explored experiences of social isolation among young people as well as the frustrations of the parents and teachers who wish to help. This groundbreaking book conceptualizes loneliness not simply as the absence of social connections, but as a continuum of developmental experience, often growing out of the conflict between opposite needs: to be like one’s peers yet be one’s unique self. The author draws clear distinctions between loneliness and solitude and identifies genetic and environmental characteristics (i.e., social, psychological, familial, and educational) that can be reinforced to help children become more resilient and less isolated. In addition, therapeutic approaches are described that challenge loneliness by encouraging empowerment, resilience, and hope, from proven strategies to promising tech-based interventions. Highlights include: • Developmental perspectives on loneliness. • Schools and the role of teachers, from preschool to high school. • Peer relations (e.g., cliques, bullies, exclusion, and popularity). • Lonely children, lonely parents: models of coping. • Loneliness in the virtual world. • Prevention and intervention strategies at home, at school, in therapy. Asking its readers to rethink many of their assumptions about social competence and isolation, this volume is essential reading for researchers and professionals in clinical child, school, developmental, and educational psychology; allied education disciplines; social work; and social and personality psychology.

This book represents a comprehensive examination of loneliness in childhood and adolescence.

All children experience occasional feelings of loneliness, sadness, and anger. However, when these feelings are so strong and so prolonged that they appear to overwhelm the child, the possibility of childhood depression must be considered. In "Lonely, Sad And Angry, authors Barbara D. Ingersoll and Sam Goldstein define depression in straightforward terms and explain how depression differs from the normal "ups and downs" of life. They describe what kinds of behaviors signal depression in children and adolescents and explain how to tell if a child or adolescent is depressed. They discuss the causes of depression and examine treatment options with an eye toward helping parents decide which treatment--medical, psychological, and environmental--might be most beneficial to a depressed youngster. Detailed information is provided about what parents and teachers can do to help depressed children at home, in school, and in the community. The book includes guidelines for what to do in a crisis situation and suggestions about where to turn for further help. Finally, the authors look to the future and offer some ideas about what lies ahead for children diagnosed with depression.

Loneliness Among Children With Special Needs is a groundbreaking volume that examines this vitally important, but heretofore neglected topic. Based on the shared view, from both clinical experience and research, that children with disabilities experience more loneliness than nondisabled children. This book integrates the existing knowledge, research, and applications in order to provide a model for the examination and understanding of the loneliness experiences of children with learning disabilities, behavior disorders, mild mental retardation, and emotional difficulties. Divided into five sections, the first attempts to clarify the characteristics of the lonely child, followed by a section with chapters devoted to environments and interpersonal relations. The third section is concerned with the subtyping of loneliness and adjustment and the fourth section discusses the outcomes comes of loneliness through coping and interventions. The final section provides a summary of the research using the proposed loneliness model for children with disabilities. This volume is essential reading for all researchers, clinicians, educators and students who work with children with special needs and who, as stated in the Preface, "see the importance of companionship for promoting growth of children with special needs and the costs of loneliness for current life and future adjustment."

This book on evidence-based practice with children and adolescents focuses on best evidence regarding assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of children and adolescents with a range of emotional problems including ADHD; Bi-Polar Disorder; anxiety and depression; eating disorders; Autism; Asperger's Syndrome; substance abuse; loneliness and social isolation; school related problems including underachievement; sexual acting out; Oppositional Defiant and Conduct Disorders; Childhood Schizophrenia; gender issues; prolonged grief; school violence; cyber bullying; gang involvement, and a number of other problems experienced by children and adolescents. The psychosocial interventions discussed in the book provide practitioners and educators with a range of effective treatments that serve as an alternative to the use of unproven medications with unknown but potentially harmful side effects. Interesting case studies demonstrating the use of evidence-based practice with a number of common childhood disorders and integrative questions at the end of each chapter make this book uniquely helpful to graduate and undergraduate courses in social work, counseling, psychology, guidance, behavioral classroom teaching, and psychiatric nursing. - Fully covers assessment, diagnosis & treatment of children and adolescents, focusing on evidence-based practices - Offers detailed how-to explanation of practical evidence-based treatment techniques - Cites numerous case studies and provides integrative questions at the end of each chapter - Material related to diversity (including race, ethnicity, gender and social class) integrated into each chapter

Solitude has been conceived of as both a physical and perceived separation from others. Given the current state of virtual communication permitted by technology, contemporary conceptions of solitude describe a state where an individual is removed from opportunities for social interaction. Historical views have emphasized both the good and the bad of solitude for child and adolescent development. For example, spending time alone is thought to facilitate critical developmental skills, including individuation, self-regulation, and achieving a sense of autonomy. However, there is also widespread concern that spending too much time alone will deprive children and adolescents of the critical and unique opportunities and benefits afforded peer interactions. This is one example of the paradox of solitude that illustrates the complex nature of solitude and its relations with well‐being. In addition, researchers have further proposed a model of developmental timing effects for solitude, in which non-linear variations are postulated in the implications of solitude from early childhood to emerging adulthood. Such non-linear variations reflect the myriad of factors that could serve to mediate, moderate, and complicate how solitude impacts child and adolescent well‐being.

Tears of a lonely Child is a story based on the true events of a parentless child who suffers from emotional, physical, sexual and mental abuse. She struggles with adapting to things children/ adolescents shouldn't have to endure. The heartbreak she harbors. The tears she's shed. The loneliness. Jaw-clenching events, and dark memories. No matter how close she comes to bettering herself and making a like, things never seen to go her way. Can she evolve under her circumstances, as lies are told and the truth unfolds, or will she become a product of our environment? How can she survive when the odds are stacked against her? Fighting for a place in the world - to belong and be accepted - with no guidance, where will she turn?

As the world of education evolves rapidly, understanding the intricacies of emotion, cognition, and language development is becoming increasingly vital. Unfortunately, the existing literature often fails to provide a comprehensive and interdisciplinary approach to this complex subject. This knowledge gap leaves scholars, researchers, and practitioners needing a cohesive framework to navigate the challenges of language acquisition and learning difficulties during critical formative years. The groundbreaking book Exploring Cognitive and Psychosocial Dynamics Across Childhood and Adolescence offers a fresh perspective by integrating cutting-edge research from psycholinguistics, neuroscience, and developmental psychology. By synthesizing the seminal works of leading scholars and highlighting innovative studies, this book presents a holistic understanding of language development from preschool to adolescence.

In recent years its medical implications have brought loneliness to the centre of attention of mass media, government agents, and the general public. However, as this volume demonstrates, loneliness is not merely a psychological, individual, or health issue. In multiple ways, it is a serious social problem as well. Yang urges fellow researchers and scientists to broaden the existing definition and classification of loneliness, to measure loneliness with greater accuracy, and to establish more specifically the connection between loneliness and particular illness. Drawing on vast sources of data including literary works, case studies, and large-scale sample surveys covering a broad spectrum of countries (Europe and beyond), the empirical research of this study produces and presents simple but effective evidence for the social nature and variations of loneliness. Examining loneliness at higher levels, including ethnic groups, classes, national cultures, and societies, Loneliness will appeal to students and researchers interested in areas such as sociology, pyschology, and mental health.