A Study of Interactions Emerging Issues in the Science of Adolescence: Workshop Summary (2006) / Chapter Skim
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5 What Next for Research on Adolescence?
5 What Next for Research on Adolescence?
Pages 36-40
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From page 36... ...
Research findings are emerging in multiple fields, many of which were represented in the workshop -- including psychology and human development, psychiatry, biological psychiatry, behavioral and brain development, neuroscience, pediatrics and internal medicine, adolescent medicine, community medicine, epidemiology and statistics, infectious disease and immunology, sociology, education, and the law. The participants identified many opportunities to link these fields within a developmental framework and to apply this knowledge base to policy and practice.
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From page 37... ...
Dennis Bier spoke, for example, about the gaps between the conceptual approaches characteristic of biological and social sciences, using evident contrasts among some of the models that were presented. For example, models that are descriptive and qualitative may capture important but poorly understood complex processes, whereas models that are quantifiable and can be described mathematically offer a basis for experimental tests.
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From page 38... ...
To that end, a comprehensive research synthesis that examines some primary existing lines of research -- the contributions they are making and the actual and potential links among them -- could help stimulate the research agenda in ways that will make it more valuable to practitioners, policy makers, and researchers. From Dahl's perspective, adolescence requires a transdisciplinary framework because it begins in biology (the physical changes associated with puberty)
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From page 39... ...
The influence of media on diets, learning processes, social relationships, and other behaviors is another area about which complex questions can be asked in a variety of domains -- and which could also serve as the focus of a study that explored the possibilities for transdisciplinary research. In closing remarks, Robert Blum reiterated a view expressed in different ways throughout the workshop -- that new conceptual models are needed to explain the boundaries and frontiers of adolescence and to offer opportunities to strengthen scientific investigations of underlying processes.
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From page 40... ...
Participants offered a variety of candidate topics that could serve as the focus for a synthesis study, if it were tackled in steps, rather than as an effort to integrate the entire universe of research relevant to adolescence. At the same time, however, few were willing to abandon the hope of a basis for improved coordination and integration among multiple fields.
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