Lisa J. Crockett - Böcker

The decline of the socialist governments in Eastern and Central Europe and the resulting political and economic reorganizations of the 1990s provided a dramatic illustration of the far-reaching effects of social change. For those interested in the health and well-being of youth, such instances of social upheaval raise the question of how young people are affected socially and psychologically by societal changes, and whether their development is compromised or enhanced. This important volume considers the processes through which societal changes exert an impact on the course of adolescent development and identify individual and contextual factors that can modify the impact of social change and enhance the likelihood of a successful transition to adulthood.

The decline of the socialist governments in Eastern and Central Europe and the resulting political and economic reorganizations of the 1990s provided a dramatic illustration of the far-reaching effects of social change. For those interested in the health and well-being of youth, such instances of social upheaval raise the question of how young people are affected socially and psychologically by societal changes, and whether their development is compromised or enhanced. This important volume considers the processes through which societal changes exert an impact on the course of adolescent development and identify individual and contextual factors that can modify the impact of social change and enhance the likelihood of a successful transition to adulthood.

Adolescent researchers are increasingly aware that they must examine development both across time and across context. To do so, however, requires new conceptualizations and methodological approaches to the study of development, including attention to the pathways young people choose in adolescence and follow into adulthood. This volume assembles work by key researchers in the field who are struggling to understand how developmental trajectories are constructed and maintained throughout the adolescent period. A complete understanding of developmental pathways requires the recognition that adolescents' social contexts--family, school, neighborhood, and/or peer group--are important influences on the choices they make at this developmental period. Researchers have traditionally studied contexts in isolation rather than examining the interrelationships among contexts and their implications for adolescent development. The present volume seeks to address this gap in the literature, with attention given not only to the interrelationships among contexts for white, middle-class youth, but also to these issues for minority adolescents in neighborhoods that vary in terms of access to resources. It concludes with an examination of researcher-community collaboration as a strategy to move communities toward a greater awareness of adolescent development and the problems facing youth in their community, and as a means to promote potential avenues for policy change and intervention.

Adolescent researchers are increasingly aware that they must examine development both across time and across context. To do so, however, requires new conceptualizations and methodological approaches to the study of development, including attention to the pathways young people choose in adolescence and follow into adulthood. This volume assembles work by key researchers in the field who are struggling to understand how developmental trajectories are constructed and maintained throughout the adolescent period. A complete understanding of developmental pathways requires the recognition that adolescents' social contexts--family, school, neighborhood, and/or peer group--are important influences on the choices they make at this developmental period. Researchers have traditionally studied contexts in isolation rather than examining the interrelationships among contexts and their implications for adolescent development. The present volume seeks to address this gap in the literature, with attention given not only to the interrelationships among contexts for white, middle-class youth, but also to these issues for minority adolescents in neighborhoods that vary in terms of access to resources. It concludes with an examination of researcher-community collaboration as a strategy to move communities toward a greater awareness of adolescent development and the problems facing youth in their community, and as a means to promote potential avenues for policy change and intervention.

This handbook offers comprehensive coverage of the topics that are relevant to the field of adolescent and young adult development. The APA Handbook of Adolescent and Young Adult Development reviews the many factors that impact youth development across varying themes including biological underpinnings, cognitive and emotive processes, development through social contexts and roles, diversity in adolescence and the transition to adulthood, risk behaviors and psychopathology, positive youth development, intervention and policy, and new directions. The expert co-editors have recruited a new generation of top scholars as chapter authors to ensure that this comprehensive guide is thorough, detailed, and invaluable to readers. The handbook is also integrative and incorporates diversity so that clinicians, graduate students, and researchers can gain further understanding and apply this knowledge to a wider range of the population.

The relationships between children and their parents are the building blocks for f- ily relationships throughout life. Yet a growing body of research suggests important ethnic differences in styles of parenting and the qua- ties characterizing the parent-adolescent relationship.

Amid its growing diversity and shifting demographics, the U.S. is still home to glaring health inequities by race, ethnicity, and class. Yet while it is customary to identify poverty as their root cause, other complex mechanisms are involved in their perpetuation. Based on recent major studies on African-American, Latino, Asian-American, and Native American populations, Health Disparities in Youth and Families offers a thorough, nuanced examination of a wide range of causal—and protective—factors. Rigorous theories and models take into account cultural, contextual, and personal variables, including the roles of family identity, school, and neighborhood, and motivation toward health awareness (with attention paid to less frequently studied phenomena such as within-group inequalities and the Hispanic Health Paradox). Contributors approach their subjects with realism as well as optimism as the book: povides reliable information on the scope and etiology of health disparities, identifies the methodological and political challenges associated with this issue, proposes comprehensive, integrative models for understanding disparities, features examples of innovative programs for improving minority health, includes an in-depth chapter on substance use and mental health among Native American youth, offers a useful starting point for the exchange of ideas necessary to address health disparities.A provocative resource on a pressing social concern, Health Disparities in Youth and Families is necessary reading for health policy researchers, health care providers, and others dedicated to better health outcomes for all Americans.

The relationships between children and their parents are the building blocks for f- ily relationships throughout life. Yet a growing body of research suggests important ethnic differences in styles of parenting and the qua- ties characterizing the parent-adolescent relationship.

Amid its growing diversity and shifting demographics, the U.S. is still home to glaring health inequities by race, ethnicity, and class. Yet while it is customary to identify poverty as their root cause, other complex mechanisms are involved in their perpetuation. Based on recent major studies on African-American, Latino, Asian-American, and Native American populations, Health Disparities in Youth and Families offers a thorough, nuanced examination of a wide range of causal—and protective—factors. Rigorous theories and models take into account cultural, contextual, and personal variables, including the roles of family identity, school, and neighborhood, and motivation toward health awareness (with attention paid to less frequently studied phenomena such as within-group inequalities and the Hispanic Health Paradox). Contributors approach their subjects with realism as well as optimism as the book: povides reliable information on the scope and etiology of health disparities, identifies the methodological and political challenges associated with this issue, proposes comprehensive, integrative models for understanding disparities, features examples of innovative programs for improving minority health, includes an in-depth chapter on substance use and mental health among Native American youth, offers a useful starting point for the exchange of ideas necessary to address health disparities.A provocative resource on a pressing social concern, Health Disparities in Youth and Families is necessary reading for health policy researchers, health care providers, and others dedicated to better health outcomes for all Americans.

This book explores the risk and protective factors of rural life and minority status for youth and their families. It provides innovative perspectives on well-documented developmental challenges (e.g., poverty and lack of resources) as well as insights into the benefits of familial and cultural strengths. Coverage includes recent theories in child development, empirical studies of rural minority populations, and leading-edge interventions for urgent issues. The volume presents a spectrum of opportunities for understanding and providing services for youth in the United States through the lens of a diverse collection of ethnic minority experiences in rural settings. Topics featured in this volume include:Theoretical models focused on the intersection of ethnicity and rural settings.Family processes, child care, and early schooling in rural minority families.Promising strategies for conducting research with rural minority families.Strengths-based educational interventions in rural settings.Promoting supportive contexts for minority youth in low-resource rural communities.Rural Ethnic Minority Youth and Families in the United States is a valuable resource for researchers and professors, clinicians and related professionals and graduate students across such disciplines as clinical child, school and developmental psychology, family studies, social work and public health.