The Shidduch Crisis: Causes and Cures - by Michael Salamon, PhD

Note from The Awareness Center's daily newsletter:
The Awareness Center is proud to announce a new book is coming out in June, 2007 which addresses dating in the orthodox world. The book is a must read book for anyone who is dating, has children, grandchildren who are dating or planning on dating.

The Shidduch Crisis: Causes and Cures – An Overview and Guide For Daters and Their Parents
by Michael Salamon, Phd.

The Shidduch Crisis: Causes and Cures – An Overview and Guide For Daters and Their Parents, takes a hard, honest look at the real difficulties faced by the dating public in today’s Orthodox world. With the rates of divorce and eating disorders rising, complaints regarding the very real shortage of men and the move away from socializing activities to the exclusive use of third party shaddchanim, a true crisis exists - and may even be worsening. In this book the author explores these issues, particularly those related to how matches are made. He finds that most are made based on availability, not compatibility and on superficial criterion, which have no relevance to what truly makes a marriage successful. Citing relevant data from the fields of psychology, sociology and neurology along with a host of anecdotes from a wide range of people Dr. Salamon, a well-known psychologist, author and lecturer provides guidelines to help alleviate this crisis. This is not a “how to” for negotiating the shidduch process. Instead Dr. Salamon looks at the lists of criterion, the questions asked by people, the expectations for a mate that have developed over the last several years within the shidduch process and shows how they are counter intuitive for forming healthy marriages. He also shows how much of what passes for background checking in fact may be lashon hora. But most importantly, Dr. Salamon provides real suggestions for going beyond the physical, superficial standards that have developed. He advocates an approach where a measure of personal maturity is returned to those who are dating and makes the case for alleviating the external pressures on the dating couple. The book is written in an engaging style and while some aspects may seem controversial no one can reject its relevance and depth.
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Michael J. Salamon, Ph.D., FPPR, FICPP
Dr. Michael Salamon received his doctorate in psychology from Hofstra University. He is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association, a Fellow of the Gerontological Society of America's Behavioral and Social Sciences Section and a board certified Diplomate-Fellow Prescribing Psychologist Register.

Dr. Salamon is the founder and director of the Adult Developmental Center, Inc. (ADC), a comprehensive psychological consulting practice in Hewlett, NY. He empowers individuals and families to cope with the various psychological challenges that arise throughout the life span. Among his areas of specialization are substance abuse and alcoholism counseling, crisis management, child, family, and marital counseling, therapeutic interventions, and gerontology.

Dr. Salamon has worked as the Director of Psychology at St. John's Episcopal Hospital and Nursing Home, the Chief Psychologist at the Hebrew Home for the Aged in Riverdale, and the Chief Psychologist at the Gustave Hartman YM-YMHA. He is presently on staff at North Shore University Hospital. He has taught psychology at C.W. Post College of Long Island University, Touro College, and the New York Institute of Technology.

Dr. Salamon is the author of hundreds of articles, many assessment tools including the Life Satisfaction Scale and the Addiction Dependency Scale, and several books, including, Home or Nursing Home: Making the Right Choice. He has presented more than 50 papers at national and international conferences. He is listed in Television and Film Consultants, the American Psychological Association's media directory, and has appeared on numerous TV and radio.