The Emotional Lives of Teenagers

The Emotional Lives of Teenagers

Lisa's latest New York Times best seller is an urgently needed guide to help parents understand their teenagers’ intense and often fraught emotional lives—and how to support them through this critical developmental stage.

Under Pressure

Under Pressure

Lisa’s second New York Times best seller is a celebrated guide to addressing the alarming increase in anxiety and stress in girls from elementary school through college.

Untangled

Untangled

Lisa’s award-winning New York Times best seller–now available in nineteen languages–is a sane, informed, and engaging guide for parents of teenage girls.

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Untangling 10 to 20 is a dynamic library of premium content designed to support anyone who is raising, working with, or caring for tweens and teens.

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September 28, 2011

Education Week

Girl vs. Test

As a psychologist in private practice and a consultant to girls’ schools, I’ve been awed in recent years by the rising tide of “test anxiety” that threatens to drown many girls. Whether they panic in private or as part of a group ritual, even our brightest female students seem to fear tests despite overwhelming evidence that they are no less capable than boys when it comes to taking them. The recently released SAT results reflect this, in fact. Female students were on pace with male students in critical reading and writing, and only slightly behind in math. And standardized measures of math test performance other than the SAT find that girls now score just as well as boys.

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The advice provided here by Dr. Damour and the resources shared by her AI-powered librarian, Rosalie, will not and do not constitute - or serve as a substitute for - professional psychological treatment, therapy, or other types of professional advice or intervention. If you have concerns about your child’s well-being, consult a physician or mental health professional.