The In-Between Years with Dr. Sheryl

Your Teenager Still Wants to Help You, They're Just Waiting to Be Asked

September 30, 2026·38 min
Episode Description from the Publisher

Michaeleen Doucleff is a science journalist. Which only partly explains why, a few years ago, she packed up her four-year-old and moved in with a Maya family in the Yucatan, an Inuit family in the Arctic, and a group of Hadza hunter-gatherers in Tanzania. She wanted to know why kids in those cultures grow up more capable, less anxious - and honestly, easier to live with - than ours. TShe wrote a NYT bestselling book about the experience, and what she learned, called Hunt, Gather, Parent.The book mostly addresses the parenting of toddlers and young children, so Dr. Sheryl wanted to ask Dr. Doucleff whether and how any of this holds up when your kid is seventeen, driving your car, and rolling their eyes at you from across the kitchen?They get into why an eye roll might be a better sign than you think. Why kids are wired to want to help long before we start assigning them chores. What actually happens to a kid's motivation the second you say "good job." And the difference between raising a kid who does the dishes and raising one who feels like a real, needed part of the family, at any age.*Thank you to our partners for making this episode possible:Yoto: Get 15% off your order with the code DRSHERYL15 at YotoPlay.com. New customers only, ends October 31, offer valid on select products only. Terms apply.Frida: Shop Frida for Kids at Walmart and Amazon todayGood Inside’s Dr. Becky and Dr. Sheryl have a new show on YouTube - Teens & Screens, a bi-weekly video series helping parents navigate today's biggest technology questions. Watch the first episode on youtube.com/@goodinside. Follow Dr. Sheryl on InstagramLearn more about Good Inside Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

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