Are we raising a nation of little egomaniacs?

Debate erupts over whether kids get too much praise or not enough
Story By Victoria Clayton: Photo by Tim Garcha / Corbis Stock
From MSNBC.com


Stephen Scheck never liked the way some parents lavish praise on their kids in public, so he didn't do it with his two children, now freshmen in high school and college.

“My wife and I pretty early on started to notice this whole thing happening at Brownies, Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, 4-H meetings or wherever that many parents seemed very invested in their children always being the star, always having a great time, always feeling successful,” says Scheck, a college dean in Monmouth, Ore.

Yet he wanted the children to have high self-esteem, so the youngsters got their share of ego boosts at home. They also were steered toward sports such as swimming where they had a chance to not only compete with other kids but also achieve “personal bests.” Both children were urged to play musical instruments, which gave them a sense of accomplishment. He wanted them to feel good and successful, and he certainly told them they were capable and special.

But even though Scheck wasn't screaming from the stands, his parenting style might still come under fire from some psychologists who believe we're raising a nation of "special" egomaniacs. This notion was fueled recently by Jean Twenge, a San Diego State University psychologist, and colleagues who released the results of a study that concluded college kids today are 30 percent more narcissistic than they were in 1982.