Where ARE the footnotes Stephen? I have the book by my side (doubt there exists more than one version) and can not find one, not one, footnote on any page to provide the source for any of her assertions or conclusions. Yes, there is a list of references at the end of the book (391---is that what you mean by footnotes?) but how can a reader determine how and when any of those references were used? I truly welcome rebuttals but I stand by my initial statement that there is not one footnote for any one particular statement or assertion Harris makes.
When we make rather casual assertions on this listserv, we are often asked, and rightly so, what is the source for your statement? So I feel I have a right to ask Judith Harris the same. Stephen, I have tremendous appreciation and respect for many of your posts. So I would appreciate you providing us the 391 "footnotes" you say she makes and on which pages they exist. You, of all people, must appreciate that providing a list of articles/books at the end of her book, without mention of how they relate to the statements made throughout her book, are not footnotes. And please let us keep this discussion to the facts at hand as opposed to the awards she was given and the biggies in the field that support her. As I've stated before, I feel very sad that we seem to have reverted to buying into authoritative evidence over empirical evidence. Those who have more respect for a hypothesis simply because it was made by a person with impressive status, awards and impressive backing from the powers-that-be have gone with the authoritative model. That could be the end of the science of psychology that has taken us so very long to reach. Joan [EMAIL PROTECTED] > On 14 Mar 2008 at 19:32, Joan Warmbold wrote: > >>it goes totally against the grain of the theory of Judith >> Harris's that parents care-giving doesn't make much of a difference. I >> found her hypothesis patently ludicrous but thought I had best check >> out her book, "The Nurture Assumption," before I criticize it. When I >> read it, I was astonished at the amazingly poor scholarship throughout. >> First, she does not provide one (not one!) footnote, therefore making >> it impossible for readers to determine the source of her various >> conclusions and beliefs. She also provides an amazing number of casual >> observations as 'scientific' evidence. > > I'm astonished myself at these assertions from Joan, and I can only > conclude that she must have read some other "Nurture Assumption" than > the one I have. In my copy, Harris lists 391 footnotes referencing her > arguments, and provides more than 700 explicit references to the > scientific literature (there were so many I grew tired counting and had > to estimate). > > The work is exceptionally well-supported, with the "casual observations" > intended only for illustration and explanation and to make the book > interesting to read. Her"patently ludicrous hypothesis" has a firm basis > in the findings of the important field of behaviour genetics, Obama's mom > notwithstanding. An earlier and briefer version (Harris, 1995) was found > to be sufficiently persuasive as to be published in the holy of holies, > _Psychological Review_ despite her lack of a Ph.D. or any academic > affiliation, and how often does _that_ happen? It was then awarded the > APA's George A. Miller Award for an Outstanding Recent Article in > General Psychology in 1998, which is not bad for a theory which Joan > finds entirely lacking in scientific merit. Harris's views are > unfortunately often misunderstood and misrepresented, and no wonder, > because they provide a significant challenge to the conventional view of > child development. Are you sure you really read the book, Joan? > > Harris, J. (1995). Where is the child's environment? A group > socialization theory of child development. Psychological Review, 102, 458- > 489. > > Stephen > ----------------------------------------------------------------- > Stephen L. Black, Ph.D. > Professor of Psychology, Emeritus > Bishop's University e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > 2600 College St. > Sherbrooke QC J1M 1Z7 > Canada > > Subscribe to discussion list (TIPS) for the teaching of > psychology at http://flightline.highline.edu/sfrantz/tips/ > ----------------------------------------------------------------------- > > --- > To make changes to your subscription contact: > > Bill Southerly ([EMAIL PROTECTED]) > > --- To make changes to your subscription contact: Bill Southerly ([EMAIL PROTECTED])
