Broken free of any semblance of family control or community restraints, thousands of American youth roamed entirely at will throughout the cities of 19th-century America and supported themselves alternately from the legitimate street trades and from outright thievery. The invention of modern adolescence was partially a response to this neglected…

Assessed whether capacity for self-reflection in late adolescent females was related to their level of identity development using female college students as subjects (N=85). Found significantly higher degree of self-reflection for the advanced identity status subjects in the 32 subjects who fit purely into 1 of 4 identity statuses. (Author/ABL)

Examines connections between adolescents' perceptions of their relationships with their parents and the concept of individuation. Focuses on the parent-child relationship before adolescence, de-idealization of parents at the onset of adolescence, and development of an understanding of parents as persons. (RJC)

Administered the Personal Orientation Inventory, Tennessee Self-Concept Scale, a group Rorschach, and a biographical questionnaire to 24 randomly selected freshmen from a small Northwest liberal arts college. Results indicated that the young adults responded differently from either children or mature adults. Findings support contention that…

Examined development of self-monitoring behavior during adolescence. Administered Adolescent Self-Monitoring Scale to 490 students in grades 7 through 12. Findings supported hypothesis that self-monitoring behavior increases from early to late adolescents. Found significant difference by age in overall self-monitoring behavior and in sensitivity…

Examined significance of instrumental versus experiential orientation and of formistic versus dialectical thinking in identity research. Among 60 college students, those in identity status characterized by formation and maintenance of structure (Foreclosure) were instrumentally oriented whereas those characterized by openness to change and…

Findings from 27 gay male adolescents revealed that most respondents reported feeling different from other boys as children. Average age of first crush on another boy was 12.7 years; average age for realizing they were gay was 12.5 years. Traditional family values played greater role in predicting coming out experiences than did race. (Author/NB)

Assessed 61 nonchronic juvenile offenders and their parents using Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scales II. Functional perspectives of family cohesion and adaptability by juvenile offender and one or both parents were associated with higher levels of ego development in offender as measured by Washington University Sentence Completion…

Examines the underlying dimensions of adolescent emotion through exploratory factor analysis. Self-reports from 483 male and female fifth through ninth graders were analyzed. Adolescent effect in students was found to be comparable to that observed in adults, with variations possibly related to social transition of adolescents. (SH)

Used Erikson's and Gilligan's theories of adolescent development to conduct content analysis of depiction of adolescent development in sample of Newberry Medal winners and honor books. Found some diversity among major characters, although white males were overrepresented. Many characters underwent identity crisis. Themes of separation and…

Used longitudinal data from Oregon Youth Study to examine quantitative and qualitative change. Used latent growth models to demonstrate changes in form and systematic changes in mean level for subgroup of boys. Factor analyses carried out at three ages showed that, over time, changes in form and addition of new problems were quantifiable and thus…

Reviews number of social difficulties facing black families (delinquency, addiction, welfare dependence, family dissolution, unwed parents, school failure) and problems specific to black males. Describes activities undertaken by Male Responsibility Program (MRP) of Detroit (Michigan) Urban League, which works to develop culturally specific…

Explores individual developmental and family system factors associated with running away. In model presented, ability of youth to successfully individuate is tied to overarching tolerances for autonomy and intimacy that exist within family system. Running away, in this perspective, is viewed as conflict-induced effort on the part of youth to…

A five-year longitudinal ethnographic study explores the relationship between the temporal organization of neighborhood activities and the social engagements of urban African American teen mothers. Found that courting activities occurred during the morning, baby parading during the afternoon-evening, with teen mothers avoiding the illicit drug…

Kansas City YouthNet is taking on a leadership role in promoting community youth development (CYD). YouthNet's efforts to shift the measurement and evaluation focus from delivery of staff services to individual youth achievement is expected to lead to additional funds, a new CYD infrastructure, and improved lives of youth. (Author/JOW)