Biography of james dobson

James Dobson

Evangelical Christian psychologist, author, and radio broadcaster

For other people named James Dobson, see James Dobson (disambiguation).

James Clayton Dobson Jr. (born April 21, ) is an American evangelical Christian author, psychologist, and founder of Focus on the Family (FotF), which he led from until In the s, he was ranked as one of the most influential spokesmen for conservative social positions in American public life. Although never an ordained minister, he was called "the nation's most influential evangelical leader" by The New York Times while Slate portrayed him as a successor to evangelical leaders Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson.

As part of his former role in the organization he produced the daily radio program Focus on the Family, which the organization has said was broadcast in more than a dozen languages and on over 7, stations worldwide, and reportedly heard daily by more than million people in countries. Focus on the Family was also carried by about 60 U.S. television stations daily. In , he launched the radio broadcast Family Talk with Dr. James Dobson.

Dobson advocates for "family values" — the instruction of children in heterosexuality and traditional gender roles, which he believes are mandated by the Christian Bible. The goal of this is to promote heterosexual marriage, which he views as a cornerstone of civilization that must be protected from the dangers of feminism and the LGBT rights movement. Dobson seeks to equip his audience to fight in the American culture war, which he calls the "Civil War of Values".

His writing career started as an assistant to Paul Popenoe. After Dobson's rise to prominence through promoting corporal punishment of disobedient children in the s, he became a founder of purity culture in the s. He has promoted his ideas via his various Focus on the Family affiliated organization

Family Man: The Biography of Dr. James Dobson

April 13,
I don’t think author Dale Buss meant to reveal a key insight into Doctor James Dobson’s personality, but, he did when he described the psychologist’s “experience dealing with a difficult TV host.” Buss writes that Dobson’s regular appearances on The Dinah Shore Show ended when Shore refused to hold up one of Dobson’s books in front of the camera. For that indiscretion, apparently, Dobson reportedly called Shore “a prima donna.” Later, Dobson had a falling out with Phil Donahue when the host allegedly refused to let his guest share his views on spanking children. Buss claims that “James Dobson can’t stand Phil Donahue.”

Buss calls Dobson “a born entrepreneur.” Dobson is driven, according to Buss, by “a desire to affirm his father’s legacy, by his prodigious creative and organizational talents, and by a dead-reckoning inner compass for directing the growth of the ministry.” Dobson’s own cousin, H.B. London reports his famous relative “transfers his high expectations of himself to others.” He’s one who’s willing to forgive other’s mistakes when confessed, but Dobson doesn’t expect those same mistakes to be made again. One insider told Buss that his boss “worshipped at the throne of integrity.”

Dobson’s friends describe him as one who can laugh at crude pranks, such as the time a staffer covered toilet bowls with Saran Wrap. Buss gives us examples, however, when Dobson “has been known to carry things too far.” Other real life vignettes reported here describe “a few episodes where Dobson’s patience has worn thin.” The author also reports the time, “from a distance,” Dobson allegedly diagnosed William Bennett’s gambling problem as an addiction.

Is or was Dobson “the preeminent family-relationship guru of our time?” His wife of 54 years, Shirley believes her husband “doesn’t have a lot of faults.” The Dobson’s son, Ryan, calls his father a man who works too much. As a lobbyist on Capitol Hill, Dobson, accordin
  • James dobson obituary focus on the family

    • Dobson, James C., Jr. (), Evangelical Leader

    James C. Dobson, Jr., is both founder and president of Focus on the Family (FOTF)—an evangelical organization "dedicated to the care and preservation of the home"—and an influential leader of America's Religious Right. Dobson earned a Ph.D. in child psychology from the University of Southern California in Until he worked as professor of pediatrics at USC's School of Medicine and remained an attending psychologist at Children's Hospital of Los Angeles until But it was Dobson's publication of Dare to Discipline, which sold 2 million copies in , that established his reputation as the evangelical Dr. Spock and reset his career trajectory toward radio broadcasting. His show, Focus on the Family, with Dr. James Dobson, began broadcasting in over forty-two radio stations. Today Dobson leads FOTF, which has expanded into a multiservice evangelical agency with more than thirteen hundred employees and with an annual budget of more than one hundred million dollars. He also plays a central role in the Family Research Council (FRC), a political action organization he launched in to promote a conservative "family values" agenda at all levels of government.

    The key to Dobson's success at FOTF lay in his popularizing combination of contemporary psychology with evangelical faith, a destined-to-succeed combination given the ardent individualism of American evangelicals and psychology's focus on the individual. Moreover, Dobson's world is a simple one—there are those who are on God's side and those who are not, those who recognize sin as the cause of all destructive human behavior and those who do not. Dobson says permissive parenting has failed because it "spares the rod and spoils the child." Children need discipline, including spanking—though Dobson restricts parents with a history of abuse or violent tempers from striking their children and limits spanking to children to 8 years old. Likewise, Dobson's sensationalistic, videot

    Family Man: The Biography of Dr. James Dobson - Softcover

    From the Back Cover

    Culture Warrior
    -- Time

    Activist
    --Washington Post

    Kingmaker
    --Michael Crowley, The New Republic

    Two hundred twenty million people worldwide tune in for his advice on the radio. The New York Times identified him as the nation&#x;s most influential evangelical leader.

    Supporters may laud his moral guidance, and critics decry his social and political activism, but Dr. James Dobson is a power-hitter in every arena of modern culture. You may recognize his name, but the complete story of this family man&#x;his life, his influences, his worldwide ministry, and his heart for his own family&#x;has never been told . . . until now.

    Pulitzer Prize-nominated journalist Dale Buss uncovers the full inside story of the man whose books, videos, and radio broadcasts have touched millions of marriages and families, and whose stances have influenced political elections. This revealing biography looks behind the scenes at a man whose public image is larger than life, but whose heart has always turned toward home.

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      • Biography of james dobson