Authoring Action (A2) is a youth-focused, arts-based, afterschool and summer program. A2's mission is "to transform the lives of youth and the world through the power of creative writing, spoken word, visual and media arts, film-making and leadership education that promotes positive systemic change." Using in-depth interviews, this study…

Younger members of the House and Ball Community (HBC) have created an emerging social scene called "Kiki" that has shared elements with the HBC. Given the growing popularity of the Kiki scene in urban communities with large numbers of Black gay, bisexual, and transgender (GBT) adolescents and emerging adults, it is important to…

Achieving a clear view of one's personality is a challenging but crucial developmental task during adolescence, which has enduring influences. This task might be harder if significant others see individuals differently from how the adolescents see themselves. Supporting this, the looking-glass-self theory suggests that significant others…

Manifestations of internalizing problems, such as specific symptoms of anxiety and depression, can change across development, even if individuals show strong continuity in rank-order levels of internalizing problems. This illustrates the concept of heterotypic continuity, and raises the question of whether common measures might be construct-valid…

Prior research has demonstrated both socialization and selection effects for the relationship between antisocial peer affiliation and externalizing problems in adolescence. Less research has evaluated such effects postadolescence. In this study, a cross-lagged panel analysis was used to evaluate the extent of "socialization" (i.e., the…

The long-term import of a fundamental challenge of adolescent social development--establishing oneself as a desirable peer companion while avoiding problematic behaviors often supported within peer groups--was examined in a community sample of 184 adolescents, followed from ages 13 to 23, along with parents, peers, and romantic partners. The…

This study examined punishment of excluders and compensation of victims after observing an instance of social exclusion at various phases of adolescent development. Participants (n = 183; age 9 to 22 years) were first included in a virtual ball-tossing game, Cyberball, and then "observed" the exclusion of a peer. Subsequently, they…

This article responds to recent calls for a focus on successful development in young people and examination of its developmental precursors, in order to identify potentially modifiable targets for interventions. The current study examined child and adolescent precursors of positive functioning in emerging adulthood, including individual…

Devon is a bright, engaging 22-year-old with a proud sense of accomplishment. He believes that while people encounter obstacles during their lives, these obstacles can be overcome with motivation and perseverance. Devon says people simply need to identify what they value, set goals and move beyond the obstacles. Devon has been faced with multiple…

A diverse sample of 1,143 high school seniors and 182 students who were part of the same cohort but who left high school without graduating were interviewed during late adolescence (Time 1 [T1]) as well as 2 (Time 2 [T2]) and 4 years later (Time 3 [T3]). Perceived self-development, peer support, and prior levels of depressive symptoms (T2) were…

Through written responses to a questionnaire, adolescents' perceptions of discussions with parents and friends were examined with reference to academic/vocational, social/ethical, family, and peer domains. Findings are discussed in terms of differences in procedures of social construction between parents' and friends' socializing influences.…

A study of 643 adolescents and 474 young adults explored relationships among young people's observations and opinions of exclusionary behavior and their reports of whether exclusion affects their social and academic adjustment. Findings indicated that, unlike young adults, adolescents' perceptions of, and attitudes about, school ecologies…

This guide offers strategies for working with students with autism in the areas of academic instruction, organization and time management, and social skills. The importance of considering the autistic student's use of language and thinking style is stressed. Chapter 1, "Who Are Higher Functioning Young Adults with Autism?" (Ann Fullerton),…