"I'm both a clinical psychologist and a journalist," says Lawrence Kutner, "which means that I get paid to stick my nose in other people's business and to learn from their mistakes and their successes."

Lawrence Kutner, PhD (www.drkutner.com), is a nationally known clinical psychologist who trained at the Mayo Clinic and teaches at Harvard Medical School. From 1987 to 1994 he wrote the award-winning, weekly New York Times column "Parent & Child," which was syndicated throughout the United States. From 1991 to 1999 he was the child behavior and "Ask the Expert" columnist for Parents magazine.

He is currently a contributing editor of Parenting, Family Life, and Baby Talk magazines. The PBS special Adventures in Parenting, With Dr Lawrence Kutner has been broadcast nationally since 1993. He is a former talk show host on KGO radio in San Francisco.

Dr Kutner has been a consultant to the Children's Television Workshop, the Johann Jacobs Foundation (Zurich), The Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States, and to major universities and corporations throughout the United States and Europe. He is a frequent guest on national television and radio networks. Dr Kutner received his bachelor's degree from Oberlin College in Ohio and his PhD in clinical psychology from the University of Minnesota. His recent books include Parent & Child: Getting Through to Each Other, Pregnancy and Your Baby's First Year, Toddlers and Preschoolers, Your School-Age Child, and Making Sense of Your Teenager.

Dr Kutner is the father of a 9-year-old son as well as a 21-year-old foster son from Romania. He and his family recently moved to Basel, Switzerland.