Global Perspectives on Adolescents and Their Families

This edited volume examines the adolescent period across multiple cultural settings, and in a range of contemporary contexts (e.g., rural-vs-urban, political unrest/war, rapid globalization). It employs a multi-disciplinary lens, while addressing traditional issues (e.g., identity development) and recently emergent ones (e.g., social media).

It contains four main sections: 1) adolescence and families in contexts with rapidly shifting societies/norms, 2) adolescence and families in the context of socio-political crisis and upheaval, 3) adolescence and families in the context of individual stress and strain, and 4) adolescent Identity development in the family and in transition to adulthood. Contributors to this volume are leading scholars from a range of disciplines (e.g., anthropology, psychology, family science) and thus explore adolescence from multiple perspectives. Cross-cutting themes include how the broader socio-ecological background and “ecocultural niche”shape various dimensions of adolescence, how the role of the family is redefined in these various contexts and circumstances, and how adolescent resilience and family strengths are formed across a broad range of settings. Throughout, this volume highlights the continued centrality of family in the development and well-being of adolescents across the globe. This is an essential resource for practitioners and researchers who treat and study adolescents.

Yan Ruth Xia is a Professor in Child, Youth and Family Studies at University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She has conducted research on strengths and challenges of Asian and Asian American families with adolescents and families during social transition. Her research examines the mediating and moderating effects of contextual factors on the association of parenting, parent-adolescent relationship and adolescent outcomes, and has published extensively in these areas. Yan is the recipient of the National Council on Family Relations International Section 2020 Jan Trost Award for Outstanding Contributions to Comparative Family Studies.

Maria Rosario T. de Guzman is a Professor and Extension Specialist in Adolescent Development in Child, Youth and Family Studies at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She has over 20 years of experience conducting research and developing programs that address well-being and health among underserved populations, particularly for youth and families in rapidly changing contexts (e.g., migration). She has over 50 publications, including the book, “Parenting from Afar: The Reconfiguration of Family Across Distance” which received the prestigious Ursula Gielen Global Psychology Award from the American Psychological Association for its contribution to Psychology as a global discipline. 

Rosario Esteinou is a family sociologist and Senior Professor and Researcher at the Center of Research and Higher Studies in Social Anthropology (CIESAS) in Mexico City. She has over 30 years of experience conducting research on families in Mexico and recently in Latin America. She is the author of 2 books and has edited or coedited 6 books, and published several articles and chapters about families’ strengths; kinship; family and modernity; sociocultural and demographic patterns; parenting adolescents and children; intimacy in couple relationships; affection, emotions, and subjective wellbeing; gender inequality and violence in the family; and family-oriented policies.

Cody Stonewall Hollist is an Associate Professor in Child, Youth and Family Studies where he teaches in the Marriage and Family Therapy Program at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. His research is focused on supporting underserved adolescents and their families as they face trauma and crisis. He primarily works with immigrants to the U.S. and Brazilian families that are in contexts with little resources. He has over 25 years of conducting research in multiple parts of Brazil with mental health prevention and intervention programs, including working with families who have a child with Congenital Zika Virus Syndrome. He has authored numerous research publications and book chapters in both English and Portuguese. In 2020 he was the recipient of a U.S. Fulbright Scholar award to Brazil.