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| Adele Faber | |
|---|---|
| Name | Adele Faber |
| Occupation | Author, educator |
| Notableworks | How to Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk; Siblings Without Rivalry |
Adele Faber is an American author and educator known for books and workshops on parent-child communication and conflict resolution. She rose to prominence through collaborative works using principles derived from Austurism and Thomas Gordon (psychologist)-style approaches, influencing parenting, teaching, and counseling communities. Her methods have been incorporated into programs across institutions such as the Parent-Teacher Association, Harvard University extension programs, and international family-support organizations.
Faber was born in the United States and raised in a milieu shaped by mid-20th-century social movements and educational reforms influenced by figures like John Dewey, Jean Piaget, and Erik Erikson. She completed undergraduate studies at a liberal arts college before undertaking graduate work that brought her into contact with communication theorists associated with University of Chicago and Teachers College, Columbia University. Her formative training included exposure to Thomas Gordon (psychologist), Carl Rogers, and practitioners connected to the emerging nonviolent communication and humanistic psychology communities of the 1960s and 1970s.
Faber began her career teaching in classrooms influenced by progressive pedagogy associated with Maria Montessori, A.S. Neill, and Reggio Emilia-inspired programs. She later shifted to conducting parent workshops modeled on techniques popularized by Thomas Gordon (psychologist) and related to the work of Marshall Rosenberg. Her most notable publication, How to Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk (coauthored), became a bestseller in markets alongside titles by Dr. Benjamin Spock, Arianna Huffington, and Brené Brown. Other books include Siblings Without Rivalry and 24 Hours That Changed My Life, which entered curricula and continuing-education lists alongside works by Daniel Goleman, Carol Gilligan, and Alfie Kohn.
Her materials have been used in professional development at institutions like Yale University clinics, University of California, Berkeley family resource centers, and community programs linked to United Way and UNICEF family-support initiatives. Faber’s workshops have paralleled outreach models used by Planned Parenthood and parenting curricula promoted by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention-associated family-health projects.
Faber’s longstanding partnership with Elaine Mazlish produced influential coauthored texts and workshops that fused techniques resonant with approaches from A.A. Milne-inspired storytelling to contemporary family systems theory associated with Murray Bowen. Mazlish, a drama and education practitioner, complemented Faber’s classroom background with media and community theater perspectives reminiscent of techniques used by Jerome Bruner and Augusto Boal. Together they created resources that circulated within networks tied to National Education Association, American Psychological Association divisions on family psychology, and parent-support groups influenced by Alfred Adler and Virginia Satir.
Their collaborative model emphasized skills adopted in teacher-training programs at Stanford University and University of Michigan and featured in manuals alongside those by Haim Ginott and Ross W. Greene. The pair delivered workshops internationally, engaging audiences linked to organizations like World Health Organization regional family centers and municipal family-services departments in cities such as New York City, London, and Toronto.
Faber’s teaching philosophy centers on respectful communication, active listening, and problem-solving strategies influenced by Carl Rogers’ client-centered methods, Thomas Gordon (psychologist)’s parent-effectiveness training, and Nonviolent Communication frameworks popularized by Marshall Rosenberg. Her techniques draw on child-development research associated with Jean Piaget, Lev Vygotsky, and Erik Erikson, and align with classroom-management approaches espoused by Fred Jones and Kounin. These methods have been integrated into professional training for educators and counselors at institutions including Columbia University, Oxford University continuing-education programs, and municipal school-district in-service sessions.
Faber’s influence extends into popular media, where her principles have been cited alongside parenting authorities such as Magda Gerber, Penelope Leach, and Janet Lansbury. Her workshops emphasize skills similar to those taught in conflict resolution and restorative-practice programs found in schools influenced by The International Institute for Restorative Practices.
Faber’s books have received widespread acclaim from parenting organizations like Zero to Three and endorsements from pediatricians connected to American Academy of Pediatrics. Reviewers in outlets comparable to The New York Times Book Review and Publishers Weekly have praised the accessibility of her prose and the practicality of exercises. Critics, including some academics in developmental psychology departments at Princeton University and University of California, Los Angeles, have argued that anecdotal case studies in her books lack the experimental rigor typical of randomized trials favored by researchers such as Diana Baumrind and Paul Amato. Other commentators in outlets like The Atlantic and The Guardian have debated scalability of workshop-based interventions versus systemic policy approaches advocated by scholars such as Annette Lareau.
Faber has maintained a private personal life, living in the United States while engaging with global audiences through workshops and lectures in cities like Boston, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Seattle. She has participated in conferences alongside figures from parenting, psychotherapy, and education sectors such as Daniel J. Siegel, Mary Pipher, and Gabor Maté. Her legacy persists through training programs, translation of her works into multiple languages, and a network of certified facilitators operating in regions served by organizations like Save the Children and local family-service agencies.
Category:American non-fiction writers Category:Parenting writers