From: The Atlantic
Let Your Kids Fail
February 4, 2026
…
Ann S. Masten, a developmental psychologist, describes resilience as “ordinary magic,” the result of normal developmental processes rather than extraordinary personal qualities. But those processes require what she calls “adaptive systems,” one of the most important of which involves the capacity to learn to cope with stress. Children who are consistently shielded from everyday challenges don’t get to practice this coping. When they inevitably encounter larger disappointments—a college rejection, a romantic breakup—they might lack the psychological fortitude to handle it.
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