Conducting Applied Developmental Science in Diverse Contexts

Abstract

Conducting Applied Developmental Science in Diverse Contexts introduces readers to the field of applied developmental science while explaining the importance of conducting applied developmental research in diverse contexts. The first section of the book provides a review of relevant theoretical perspectives and then defines diverse contexts along two dimensions: the backgrounds and identities of the children and families who participate in developmental research, and the lived environments those children and families inhabit, from their homes and schools to juvenile justice and child welfare service settings. The first chapter of the book’s second section—Methods—covers the designs, measures, and analytic approaches developmental researchers may employ in applied settings, with an emphasis on the methodological issues that are more likely to arise when research is conducted in real-world environments. The second chapter of this section addresses how applied developmental researchers are currently trained, and outlines how those training approaches will need to adapt to promote a more equitable, responsive, and relevant science. The chapters that comprise the third and final section of the book focus on why it is essential that developmental research is conducted in diverse contexts if that research is to yield findings that are scientifically sound in their generalizability and that can maximize the likelihood that applied developmental science will fulfil its promise to improve the lives of children and families. The book’s final chapter reviews the landscape of applied developmental science and the different professional roles that applied developmental researchers may choose to inhabit throughout their careers.