Naomi Fisher on Whether Parents Matter

Off-Trail Learning

Dr. Naomi Fisher is a clinical psychologist, mother of two self-directed learners, and the author of the forthcoming book, "Changing Our Minds: How children can take control of their own learning." In this deep-dive interview, Naomi and I dissect the modern culture of “intensive parenting” and the research behind Judith Rich Harris’ controversial book, "The Nurture Assumption." We address some thorny topics including: How much do genes, peers, and parents respectively matter for a child’s long-term development? What kinds of influence do parents actually possess? How much of the nature/nurture research is universally relevant? How does self-directed learning fit into the picture? And what’s the overlap between attachment parenting and intensive parenting? Don't miss Naomi's article in The Psychologist (https://thepsychologist.bps.org.uk/volume-33/march-2020/schools-out. Her book, Changing Our Minds (https://www.littlebrown.co.uk/titles/naomi-fisher/changing-our-minds/9781472145505/), is now available for pre-order. To dive deeper into this fascinating and complicated subject, I recommend reading The Nurture Assumption (by Judith Rich Harris), Blueprint (by Robert Plomin), and Chapter 4 of my book, Why Are You Still Sending Your Kids to School?