IRADS: Collaborative on the Analyses of Pathways from Childhood to Adulthood

Regents Of The University Of Michigan - Ann Arbor, Ann Arbor MI

Investigators

Abstract

This collaboration aims to stimulate innovative, interdisciplinary analyses and interpretations of existing longitudinal data sets bearing on pathways through human development. Tracing the interacting effects of family, peer, neighborhood, and school influences during childhood on life success and problem behaviors in adulthood is a challenging task that is critical to understanding human development and designing interventions to treat maladaptive behavior. Individual longitudinal research projects that follow children over time usually have focused on a limited number of childhood factors that might shape later behavior. At the heart of this Collaborative is the recognition that each of the disciplines in the social and behavioral sciences has made substantial contributions to our collective understanding of human behavior and development. The evolution of our science now requires a coordinated approach to further elucidate the complexities of experience and development; thus, the current Collaborative involves sociologists, economists, education specialists, and psychologists. This Collaborative is broader in scope than previous efforts in several ways: (1) it begins with a relatively large set of established, similar, and committed longitudinal projects involving scholars from a range of behavioral science disciplines; (2) it examines the full span of life-course development, from childhood to adolescence to adulthood and across generations; (3) it examines human development in the many contexts in which it occurs, including families, the peer group, neighborhoods, schools, and communities; (4) it utilizes the most advanced statistical analysis techniques; (5) findings will have implications for understanding and creating effective interventions; and (6) there will be widespread dissemination of both the substantive and methodological knowledge. A sample of specific topics include: factors affecting children's school readiness; effects on children of parents obtaining additional educational experiences; the bidirectional effects of parenting strategies on children's behavior over time; and adulthood outcomes (e.g., educational and occupational success, substance use) of childhood and adolescent aggression. In sum, after several decades of productive yet fragmented longitudinal research in the field, this Collaborative intends to integrate and replicate findings from existing longitudinal (community-level, national, and international) studies and take many steps forward in our knowledge of developmental science. The Collaborative fosters new methodological and statistical approaches, particularly models that examine simultaneous, multiple interacting ecological contexts, which will be disseminated through conferences, published papers, and invited talks. The Collaborative involves experts from a variety of disciplines in its meetings and activities, and encourages the participation of underrepresented undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral students, and faculty both from the University of Michigan and from the project sites. Results will inform psychosocial interventions and social policy. To the extent that researchers can more fully understand the influences and mechanisms that contribute to success and lack of success in life, the more likely it is that interventions can be created that will make a difference to individuals, families, schools, and neighborhoods. It is a specific focus of this Collaborative to examine social policies in different countries to understand how the well-being of children and families may differ due to the policy conditions in each country. Efforts will be made to disseminate the research findings of the Collaborative beyond academic circles to policymakers, researchers, and other important stakeholders in intervention and policy development.