Research Catalog

Playing to win : raising children in a competitive culture

Title
Playing to win : raising children in a competitive culture / Hilary Levey Friedman.
Author
Friedman, Hilary Levey, 1980-
Publication
Berkeley : University of California Press, [2013]

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TextUse in library JFE 13-7393Schwarzman Building - Main Reading Room 315

Details

Description
xvi, 288 pages; 24 cm
Summary
  • "Playing to Win: Raising Children in a Competitive Culture follows the path of elementary school-age children involved in competitive dance, youth travel soccer, and scholastic chess. Why do American children participate in so many adult-run activities outside of the home, especially when family time is so scarce? By analyzing the roots of these competitive afterschool activities and their contemporary effects, Playing to Win contextualizes elementary school-age children's activities, and suggests they have become proving grounds for success in the tournament of life-especially when it comes to coveted admission to elite universities, and beyond. In offering a behind-the-scenes look at how "Tiger Moms" evolve, Playing to Win introduces concepts like competitive kid capital, the carving up of honor, and pink warrior girls. Perfect for those interested in childhood and family, education, gender, and inequality, Playing to Win details the structures shaping American children's lives as they learn how to play to win"--
  • "Many parents work more hours outside of the home and their lives are crowded with more obligations than ever before; many children spend their evenings and weekends trying out for all-star teams, traveling to regional and national tournaments, and eating dinner in the car while being shuttled between activities. In this vivid ethnography, based on almost 200 interviews with parents, children, coaches and teachers, Hilary Levey probes the increase in children's participation in activities outside of the home, structured and monitored by their parents, when family time is so scarce. As the parental "second shift" continues to grow, alongside it a second shift for children has emerged--especially among the middle- and upper-middle classes--which is suffused with competition rather than mere participation. What motivates these particular parents to get their children involved in competitive activities? Parents' primary concern is their children's access to high quality educational credentials--the biggest bottleneck standing in the way of, or facilitating entry into, membership in the upper-middle class. Competitive activities, like sports and the arts, are seen as the essential proving ground that will clear their children's paths to the Ivy League or other similar institutions by helping them to develop a competitive habitus. This belief, motivated both by reality and by perception, and shaped by gender and class, affects how parents envision their children's futures; it also shapes the structure of children's daily lives, what the children themselves think about their lives, and the competitive landscapes of the activities themselves"--
Subjects
Bibliography (note)
  • Includes bibliographical references and index.
Call Number
JFE 13-7393
ISBN
  • 9780520276758 (hardback)
  • 0520276752 (hardback)
  • 9780520276765 (paperback)
  • 0520276760 (paperback)
LCCN
2013021947
OCLC
838792405
Author
Friedman, Hilary Levey, 1980-
Title
Playing to win : raising children in a competitive culture / Hilary Levey Friedman.
Publisher
Berkeley : University of California Press, [2013]
Type of Content
text
Type of Medium
unmediated
Type of Carrier
volume
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Research Call Number
JFE 13-7393
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