Distraught adolescents and their families may contact their pediatricians during crises in their lives. Pediatricians, faced with decisions about the evaluation and management of these problems, might welcome a textbook providing information on the common behavioral concerns of teen-agers and their families, and on their management.
Copeland's Textbook of Adolescent Psychopathology and Treatment is addressed to "clinicians and students in a variety of allied disciplines." This review focuses on the usefulness of this book to practicing pediatricians.
The author begins his text by introducing the concept of normality during adolescence. He states that Adolescence is a phase of turmoil and transition producing behavior that would be considered unusual or bizarre at any other period. Much of this normal abnormality is temporary and not indicative of mental illness, but rather a reaction to a period of developmental stress.
Not all authors agree with Copeland's interpretation of psychological normality during the teen-age