Book Reviews

Abstract

Please Don't Label My Child: Break the Doctor-Diagnosis-Drug Cycle and Discover Safe, Effective Choices for Your Child's Emotional Health. Scott Shannon and Emily Heckman. New York, NY: Rodale, 2007, 304 pp., $25.95 (hardcover).According to the title of Please Don't Label My Child by Shannon and Heckman (2007), the main themes of the book should have been about avoiding labels and things to do to prevent or counterbalance the effects of labeling. The book does an excellent job of describing what labeling is and how it can be both useful in some situations yet cause more harm than good because of the negative connotations, or stigmas, associated with labels. However, the book seemed to be more about the authors' concern about medicating children, and after the first chapter, the main focus of the book seems be how to properly raise children. There were no suggestions or alternatives to labeling; the best advice the authors gave on labeling was to avoid giving children labels, especially because the labels often represent a misdiagnosis. From a practical standpoint, it is often argued that giving labels is beneficial because children can then receive the help that they need in multiple sources, such as at school, home, or at the doctor.The real problem seems to lie in the stigmas that are associated with both diagnostic and disability labels, which is mentioned in the pros and cons discussion in the book. This position has been expressed by others. Green (2003) extends the negativity to the family members, stating that they also feel the backlash of labeling (a courtesy stigma). Green's article, "What do you mean 'what's wrong with her,'" captures the essence of how important it is to look at the individual as a person and not someone who is his or her diagnosis/ disability or even someone who has a diagnosis/disability.Modified labeling theory is a theory that Green (2003) and Kroska and Harkness (2008) cite as a source of negativity; it is when diagnoses and disabilities, both labels, become personally relevant and foster negative self-feelings. The second part of this theory is that cultural meanings, or stigmas, associated with these labels create expectations that trigger defensive behaviors aimed at avoiding rejection. Kroska and Harkness call these defensive behaviors a "secondary deviance" of the labels that further damage the social interactions, occupational successes, and self-image. It is the belief of Kroska and Harkness that stigmal sentiments can be operationalized through the evaluation (good vs. bad), the potency (powerful vs. weak), and the activity (active vs. inactive). In addition to these, there are reflected appraisals as part of the self-stigma sentiments.The best source of strength comes from within; the second comes from having a close support system. These are the issues addressed by Shannon and Heckman (2007); the latter is expressed also by Green (2003). Shannon and Heckman wrote that the keys to being emotionally healthy is to play into the child's inner strength by teaching the child to have a strong sense of self-identity, be able to self-regulate, and be resilient. …