A Behavioral Approach to the Care of Adolescents

Reviewers of medical textbooks often say in the final sentence of the review that the book should find a place on the bookshelves of students as well as of professionals interested in its subject. Aten and McAnarney's A Behavioral Approach to the Care of Adolescents is a slim paperback that will stay on my bookshelf. I will urge my students to read it to understand adolescent growth and development better. Clearly intended for this purpose, the authors specifically speak of this issue in the preface: "This book is directed toward those professionals who are at entry-level learning experience in adolescent primary health care."

There are four major sections: "Normal Development in Adolescents," "Well Adolescent Care," "Common Problems of Adolescence," and "Case Study Presentations." There are 200 references indexed throughout the text. I found the section "Common Problems of Adolescence" somewhat cumbersome. Refractive errors, dental problems, and acne are discussed along