Pathways Through Adolescence

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.

"Research on adolescent relationships has rapidly expanded during the past decade. Keeping apace with research advances is a difficult challenge. Harder still is integrating the literature into a coherent whole. This volume is designed to guide the reader through the research on close relationships before, during, and after adolescence. We are fortunate that some of the world's foremost experts on adolescent relationships agreed to summarize what is known in their respective fields of expertise. The volume begins with a section on developmental pathways and processes. This section defines relationships processes and describes individual and contextual factors that influence them. The next section is devoted to family relationships. Separate chapters are devoted to sibling relationships and parent-child relationships during the transition into adolescence and during the transition into young adulthood. The final two sections concern peer relationships"--

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.

Adolescenceâ€"beginning with the onset of puberty and ending in the mid-20sâ€"is a critical period of development during which key areas of the brain mature and develop. These changes in brain structure, function, and connectivity mark adolescence as a period of opportunity to discover new vistas, to form relationships with peers and adults, and to explore one's developing identity. It is also a period of resilience that can ameliorate childhood setbacks and set the stage for a thriving trajectory over the life course. Because adolescents comprise nearly one-fourth of the entire U.S. population, the nation needs policies and practices that will better leverage these developmental opportunities to harness the promise of adolescenceâ€"rather than focusing myopically on containing its risks. This report examines the neurobiological and socio-behavioral science of adolescent development and outlines how this knowledge can be applied, both to promote adolescent well-being, resilience, and development, and to rectify structural barriers and inequalities in opportunity, enabling all adolescents to flourish.

A remarkable mother-daughter collaboration balances the respected views of a well-known scholar with the fresh perspective of a younger colleague in a comprehensive overview of the theory and practice of language acquisition.

This book differentiates between categories of adolescent male offending and explores the behavioural and social profiles of those who become involved inviolent offending and organized crime. Using self-reported and arrest data, the book examines the key stages of male adolescent offending with a view to early recognition of behaviours that leave young men vulnerable to criminal exploitation and the escalation of violence. It also explains the importance of understanding crime motivations, how young men view themselves when they offend, and the emotions that they experience. Rather than looking at violent offending as a single category of behavior, the book helps readers differentiate between types of adolescent violence and understand the underlying psychological and social causes. It offers an insight into the journey of young people who are criminally exploited and those who become involved in committing acts of serious violence and organized crime. It does so by using data from official records, self-reported offending, and the narratives of young people. Each chapter focuses on a particular stage of offending with a view to early identification, support, and diversion. Pathways to Adolescent Male Violent Offending is aimed at practitioners in youth offending services, youth work, policing, and education. It will also be useful for students of forensic and investigative psychology, criminal justice, policing, and child and adolescent mental health.

Emotional Development from Infancy to Adolescence: Pathways to Emotional Competence and Emotional Problems offers a chapter-by-chapter introductory survey of all aspects of emotional development from infancy to adolescence, from delight, surprise and love to anger, distress and fear. Taking a chronological approach, each chapter focuses on a specific emotion and covers the theories and research relating to its development, from infants’ emotional capabilities to the changes in self-understanding and self-conscious emotions of adolescence. Hay integrates the approaches of classic developmental differentiation and differential emotions theory to create a comprehensive textbook with a unique approach to the subject matter, showcasing a range of research linking emotions to biological underpinnings and early experiences. This wide-ranging book also includes coverage of differences in temperament, developmental psychopathology, emotion regulation and development of emotional understanding, and attachment. It is core reading for students of developmental psychology, health psychology, child welfare and social work, as well as anyone taking a course on social and emotional development courses. It will also be of interest to practitioners working in educational and clinical psychology and child psychiatry.

This Provider's Guide introduces a comprehensive and developmentally appropriate treatment program,, Pathways for Self-Discovery and Change (PSDC), which provides the specific tools necessary for improving evaluation and treatment of at-risk youth, a particularly vulnerable patient population in the justice system. Using an adolescent-focused format, this protocol identifies psychological, biological, and social factors that contribute to the onset of adolescent deviance, and establishes guidelines for delivery of a 32-session treatment curriculum designed to rehabilitate both male and female adolescents with co-occurring substance abuse and criminal conduct. Now in its Second Edition, this guide provides treatment practitioners, program evaluators, and youth services administrators with the most up to date, comprehensive, and accessible information for the treatment and rehabilitation of juvenile justice clients. It is built on theoretical and research advances in the treatment and rehabilitation of juvenile justice clients, as well as feedback over the past seven years from PSDC counselees, treatment providers, and program administrators.