Parenting

Parenting: An Ecological Perspective was originally created in 1993 to answer questions such as: Why do parents differ markedly in the ways in which they care for their children? What factors contribute to individual differences in parenting behavior? The framework used for addressing these questions is the ecological perspective developed by Urie Bronfenbrenner, who recognized that children's development is influenced by the interactions that they have over time with the people, objects, and symbols in their immediate environment. Luster and Okagaki have updated the original text focusing on parental behavior and also included 6 new chapters covering topics such as: *fathers/gender of parent; *children with special needs; *ethnicity and socioeconomic status; and *parent education. The text summarizes the latest research on factors that influence parenting, with each chapter providing a look at one important influence and the linkages among these various factors. An ecological perspective draws attention to the fact that the lives of parents and children are intertwined, and that understanding factors that influence parents is important for understanding the experiences of children.

Contents: M.H. Bornstein, Series Foreword: Monographs in Parenting. T. Luster, L. Okagaki, Introduction. Part I: Characteristics of the Parents.L. Okagaki, G.E. Bingham, Parents' Social Cognitions and Their Parenting Behaviors. J. Vondra, H.B. Sysko, J. Belsky, Developmental Origins of Parenting: Personality and Relationship Factors. T. Luster, J.L. Haddow, Adolescent Mothers and Their Children: An Ecological Perspective. R.D. Parke, J. Dennis, M.L. Flyr, K.L. Morris, M.S. Leidy, T.J. Schofield, Fathers: Cultural and Ecological Perspectives. Part II: Characteristics of the Child.K.H. Karraker, P.K. Coleman, The Effects of Child Characteristics on Parenting. R.M. Hodapp, T.M. Ly, Parenting Children With Developmental Disabilities. Part III: Contextual Influences on Parenting.F.D. Fincham, J.H. Hall, Parenting and the Marital Relationship. M. Cochran, S.K. Walker, Parenting and Personal Social Networks. A.C. Crouter, S. McHale, The Long Arm of the Job Revisited: Parenting in Dual-Earner Families. J. Garbarino, C.P. Bradshaw, K. Kostelny, Neighborhood and Community Influences on Parenting. B. Leyendecker, R.L. Harwood, L. Comparini, A. Yal+inkaya, Socioeconomic Status, Ethnicity, and Parenting. D.R. Powell, Searches for What Works in Parenting Interventions. Part IV: Parental Behavior and Children's Development.L. Okagaki, T. Luster, Research on Parental Socialization of Child Outcomes: Current Controversies and Future Directions.