The JDD. In the preface to your book, you plead for awareness of psychology to be included in school curricula. What do you think of the experiment with “empathy courses” in 1,000 schools, which is expected to become widespread at the start of the next school year?
Caroline Goldman. This is an excellent initiative. It seems to me that these courses follow the same goal as those of civic education, that is to say to take a step aside, to decenter and think of the other, with an objective of the common good. Of course, I would even like to see my Little Psychology Lessons integrated into school programs (laughs). More seriously, the issue is the same: making the child aware of himself, in his functioning, and of others, in their functioning.
School bullying has become a government priority. What is the increase in harassment cases a symptom of?
First of all, being a bullied or harassing child always has to do with a management problem within the family unit. The phenomenon must be resolved at the Source. Asking institutions to act as regulator has only minimal impact. Can you imagine a shoemaker treating foot deformities? You must first go see an orthopedist. Teachers are, today, extremely mistreated, they struggle to teach and are called upon to take over in the face of children’s educational deficiencies.
“When the drive gets involved in everything, thought struggles to settle down and structure itself”
The parents themselves adopt increasingly childish behaviors, rebelling against the established order. Extremely crude ideas about the child’s psyche have been conveyed by proponents of poorly translated positive education, which have caused enormous public health damage, which we also experience in our offices. It is difficult, in these conditions, to transmit learning. When the impulse gets involved in everything, thought struggles to take root and structure itself.
The rest after this ad
The question of children’s exposure to screens has become a major subject and occupies two chapters in your book. What are the rules to apply?
I’m releasing a new podcast on this subject in August. This question is essential. A child hypnotized by a screen is no longer in a process of psychic development as allowed by relationships, love, tenderness. We should not demonize screens either. Their impact depends on the child’s environment off-screen: is he nourished and stimulated emotionally and intellectually?
This subject is a tree that hides the forest. Children with addictions may be depressed by poor family relationships and take refuge in screens, or be poorly limited educationally. In this case, parents use the screen as a babysitter, as a hypnotist, to have peace.
You have worked in a firm for over twenty years. What problems do you see arising? these last years ?
I first notice imbalances, such as the omnipotence of the pleasure principle to the detriment of the reality principle, the omnipresence of the maternal function to the detriment of the paternal function. I also observe a hyperempathetic bonding of parents to their children’s lives. A sociologist would be better able than me to explain it, but I am struck by the confusion of generational positions: we are in an era of parent-child seduction!
“Have we previously seen parents in tears because their son is not in his friend’s class on the first day of school? »
Previously, would we have seen parents in tears because their son was not in his friend’s class on the first day of school? Regarding teenagers, I observe different phenomena: an increase in school dropouts at younger and younger ages and “gender dysphoria” – a fairly rare reason for consultation when I started my career.
For what ? Little psychology lessons, Caroline Goldman, Dunod, 96 pages, €14.90
