Overcoming the Odds looks closely at the lives of an ethnically diverse group of 505 men and women who were born in 1955 on the Hawaiian island of Kauai and who have been monitored from the prenatal period through early adulthood by psychologists, pediatricians, public health professionals, and social workers. Werner and Smith trace the impact of a variety of biological and psycho-social risk factors and stressful events on the development of these individuals, most of whose parents did not graduate from high school and worked as semiskilled or unskilled laborers. Incorporating vivid case study accounts with statistical analysis, the authors focus on both the vulnerability and the resilience of those who overcame great odds to grow into competent and caring adults. They trace the recovery process through which most of the troubled adolescents in the cohort—those with histories of delinquency, teenage pregnancy, and mental health problems—emerged with improved prospects in their twenties and early thirties. Identifying both the self-righting tendencies that enable high risk children later to adapt successfully to work, marriage, and parenthood, and the conditions under which professional and volunteer care is most beneficial, Werner and Smith offer concrete suggestions for effective intervention policies.
Packed with practical clinical tools, this guide explains how to plan and organize individualized interventions that promote resilience, strengthen child-caregiver relationships, and restore developmental competencies derailed by chronic, multiple stressors. Includes more than 45 reproducibles.
The Evolution of Cognitive Behavior Therapy: A Personal and Professional Journey with Don Meichenbaum explores the "untold story" of how Cognitive Behavior Therapy emerged and discusses the controversies encountered along the way. This volume will feature a personal account of Don Meichenbaum's contributions from his initial work on self-instructional training with schizophrenics and impulsive children, through his work on stress inoculation training, and his most recent works with traumatized individuals. These previously published papers are complemented with updated papers and accompanying commentary.
"To study resilience one should adopt a fundamental humility about oneself and one′s culture and society and simultaneously a respect for the human strength of others. The chapters in this book take these three cautions seriously, and offer a convincing demonstration that resilience is indeed a many-splendored thing." --James Garbarino, Cornell University The Handbook For Working With Children and Youth: Pathways To Resilience Across Cultures and Contexts examines lives lived well despite adversity. Calling upon some of the most progressive thinkers in the field, it presents a groundbreaking collection of original writing on the theories, methods of study, and interventions that promote resilience. Unlike other works that have left largely unquestioned their own culture-bound interpretations of the ways children and youth survive and thrive, this volume explores the multiple paths children follow to health and well-being in diverse national and international settings. It demonstrates the connection between social and political health resources and addresses the more immediate concerns of how those who care for children create the physical, emotional, and spiritual environments in which resilience is nurtured. Key Features Cross-cultural. Illustrates the rich variety of culturally embedded pathways by which children navigate toward health and well-being Multidisciplinary. Draws upon international experts utilizing both quantitative and qualitative studies from psychology, social work, psychiatry, nursing, education, criminology, child and youth care, community health, and family therapy Comprehensive. Provides broad developmental perspectives on resilience, from theory and research methods to interventions with individuals, families, and communities Connects theory to practice. Clarifies the construct of resilience from the viewpoint of resilience researchers and practitioners in health-related disciplines from different methodological paradigms within the social sciences and human services Academics, graduate students, and professionals studying or working in human service fields such as human development and family studies, education, social work, child and youth care work, developmental psychology/applied developmental science, child psychiatry, nursing, and family therapy will benefit from this Handbook. In essence, anyone who works with youth or is interested in the developmental issues related to children and youth in clinical, residential, or community settings will find Ungar’s Handbook to be of great value.
Their frightened, angry faces are grim reminders of the reach of war. They are millions of children, orphaned, displaced, forced to flee or to fight. And just as they have myriad possibilities for trauma, their lives also hold great potential for recovery. The Handbook of Resilience in Children of War explores these critical phenomena at the theoretical, research, and treatment levels, beginning with the psychosocial effects of exposure to war. Narratives of young people's lives in war zones as diverse as Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Columbia, and Sudan reveal the complexities of their experiences and the meanings they attach to them, providing valuable keys to their rehabilitation. Other chapters identify strengths and limitations of current interventions, and of constructs of resilience as applied to youth affected by war. Throughout this cutting-edge volume, the emphasis is on improving the field through more relevant research and accurate, evidence-based interventions, in such areas as: An ecological resilience approach to promoting mental health in children of war. Child soldiers and the myth of the ticking time bomb. The Child Friendly Spaces postwar intervention program. The role of education for war-zone immigrant and refugee students. Political violence, identity, and adjustment in children. The Handbook of Resilience in Children of War is essential reading for researchers, scientist-practitioners, and graduate students in diverse fields including clinical child, school, and developmental psychology; child and adolescent psychiatry; social work; counseling; education; and allied medical and public health disciplines.
Despite the numerous benefits derived from major technological and medical innovations of the past century, we continue to live in a world rife with significant social problems and challenges. Children continue to be born into lives of poverty; others must confront daily their parent’s mental illness or substance abuse; still others live amid chronic family discord or child abuse. For some of these children, life’s difficulties become overwhelming. Their enduring trauma can lead to a downward spiral, until their behavioral and emotional problems become lifelong barriers to success and wellbeing. Almost no one today would deny that the world is sometimes an inhospitable, even dangerous, place for our youth. Yet most children—even those living in high-risk environments—appear to persevere. Some even flourish. And this begs the question: why, in the face of such great odds, do these children become survivors rather than casualties of their environments? For many decades, scholars have pursued answers to the mysteries of resilience. Now, having culled several decades of research findings, the editors of this volume offer an in-depth, leading-edge description and analysis of Resilience in Children, Families and Communities: Linking Context to Practice and Policy. The book is divided into three readily accessible sections that both define the scope and limits of resilience as well as provide hands-on programs that families, neighborhoods, and communities can implement. In addition, several chapters provide real-life intervention strategies and social policies that can be readily put into practice. The goal: to enable children to develop more effective problem-solving skills, to help each child to improve his or her self-image, and to define ways in which role models can affect positive outcomes throughout each child’s lifetime. For researchers, clinicians, and students, Resilience in Children, Families and Communities: Linking Context to Practice and Policy is an essential addition to their library. It provides practical information to inform greater success in the effort to encourage resilience in all children and to achieve positive youth development.
Applied Positive School Psychology is an essential guide to help teachers regain their own and assist the school community in rebuilding their health post-pandemic. While research in positive psychology is thriving, teachers and educational practitioners find it challenging to apply it in their daily practice. This practical book fills the gap between theory and practice and provides practitioners with an evidence-based toolkit on using the positive psychology in their school communities. With contributions from experts in their field, this important resource explores student wellbeing, teacher wellbeing, inclusion, developing positive relationships, creativity, and therapeutic art. Written with the practitioner in mind, Applied Positive School Psychology is a must read for the teaching community and those interested in positive education. It will also be of interest to academics specialising in wellbeing or education, educational psychologists, and education policy makers.
The fourth edition of Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics—the pioneering, original text— emphasizes children’s assets and liabilities, not just categorical labels. It includes fresh perspectives from new editors—Drs. William Coleman, Ellen Elias, and Heidi Feldman, as well as further contributions from two of the original editors, William B. Carey, M.D, and Allen C. Crocker, M.D. This comprehensive resource offers information and guidance on normal development and behavior: genetic influences, the effect of general physical illness and psychosocial and biologic factors on development and behavior. It is also sufficiently scholarly and scientific to serve as a definitive reference for researchers, teachers, and consultants. With a more user-friendly design, this resource offers easy access comprehensive guidance. Features new chapters dealing with genetic influences on development and behavior, crisis management, coping strategies, self-esteem, self-control, and inborn errors of metabolism to cover the considerable advances and latest developments in the field. Focuses on the clinical aspects of function and dysfunction, rather than arranging subjects according to categorical labels. Emphasizes children’s assets as well as their liability so you get a well-developed approach to therapeutic management. Concludes each chapter with a summary of the principle points covered, with tables, pictures and diagrams to clarify and enhance the presentation. Offers a highly practical focus, emphasizing evaluation, counseling, medical treatment, and follow-up. Features superb photos and figures that illustrate a wide variety of concepts. Offers access to the full text online through Expert Consult functionality at www. expertconsult.com for convenient reference from any practice location. Features new chapters dealing with—Genetic Influences on Development and Behavior, Crisis Management, Coping Strategies, Self-Esteem, Self-Control, and Inborn Errors of Metabolism. Presents a new two-color design and artwork for a more visually appealing and accessible layout. Provides the latest drug information in the updated and revised chapters on psychopharmacology. Introduces Drs. William Coleman, Ellen Elias, and Heidi Feldman to the editorial team to provide current and topical guidance and enrich the range of expertise and clinical experience. Covers the considerable advances and latest developments in this subspecialty through updates and revisions to existing material.
Fully updated, this new edition provides an introduction to normal, healthy physical development for all professionals who specialise in working with children. The author, an experienced nurse teacher, guides the reader through the key changes in body systems and functions from embryo to birth through childhood and adolescence. Chapter 1 sets the scene for physical needs in child development, such as the need to be warm and safe. Chapters 2 to 9 cover the body systems: skeletal; nervous; cardiovascular; respiratory; renal; digestive; reproductive; and immune. The embryology and physiological function at birth is explored in each chapter before the text moves on through the many changes over the next decade to puberty and the arrival at adult functioning. A new final chapter provides a holistic account of children’s development, body and mind. Each chapter is illustrated with line drawings and tables, and ends with scenarios which illustrate how knowledge supports good practice in a real-life situation, and a quiz to consolidate learning. Concise and clearly written, this introductory text will be essential reading for all those working with children and families in the health and social care sector, enabling them to ensure children enjoy a safe and healthy childhood in line with Every Child Matters and new national service framework directives.