The multiple contexts of middle childhood

Future of Children

Volumn 14, Issue 2, 2004, Pages 81-97

  Coll, Cynthia García ^a   Szalacha, Laura A ^a  

^a BROWN UNIVERSITY   (United States)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT; BEHAVIOR DISORDER; CHILD DEVELOPMENT; CHILDHOOD; COGNITIVE DEFECT; COMMUNITY; COMMUNITY PROGRAM; CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK; CULTURAL FACTOR; EMOTION; HEALTH CARE ACCESS; HUMAN; INFORMATION CENTER; LANGUAGE DISABILITY; MOTIVATION; RACE DIFFERENCE; RACISM; REVIEW; SCHOOL; SOCIAL DISCRIMINATION; SOCIAL STATUS; TELEVISION;

EID: 29344460442     PISSN: 10548289     EISSN: 15501558     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.2307/1602795     Document Type: Review

References (105)

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6. Not all "children of color" are first, second, or even third-generation children of immigrants and, in spite of the proportions of varying ethnic, racial, and cultural groups immigrating to the United States, not all immigrants are "persons of color." Nevertheless, both groups share "outsider status," as exemplified by their skin color, phenotype, or native language, and constitute fundamentally different populations than children in middle-class white communities.
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17. García Coll, C., and Magnuson, K. The psychological experience of immigration: A developmental perspective. In Immigration and the family: Research and policy on U.S. immigrants. A. Booth, A. Couter, and N. Landale, eds. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 1998, pp. 91-131;
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22. This integrative model of development for minority children posits that children's psychosocial characteristics can only be fully understood when viewed as agents within the contexts of historically based social stratification systems and the surrounding micro and macro elements interacting throughout their development. See García Coll, C.T., Lamberty, G., Jenkins, R., et al. An integrative model for the study of developmental competencies in minority children. Child Development (1996) 67:1891-1914.
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26. For example, the children say things such as, "The children make fun of me for being Puerto Rican." Szalacha, L.A., Erkut, S., García Coll, C., et al. Discrimination and Puerto Rican children and adolescents' mental health. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology (2003) 9(2):141-155;
27. Szalacha, L.A., Erkut, S., García Coll, C., et al. Perceived discrimination and resilience. In Resilience and vulnerability: Adaptation in the context of childhood adversities. S. Luthar, ed. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2003, pp. 414-435.
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30. See note 10, Bronfenbrenner, 1979; and Bronfenbrenner, 1986.
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32. Harry, B. Restructuring the participation of African American parents in special education. Exceptional Children (1992) 59:123-131;
33. García Coll, C.T., and Magnuson, K. Cultural differences as sources of developmental vulnerabilities and resources: A view from developmental research. In Handbook of early childhood intervention. S.J. Meisels and J.P. Shonkoff, eds. Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University Press, 2000, pp. 94-111.
34. See note 5, Suárez-Orozco and Suárez-Orozco, 2001; and note 6, Spencer and Markstrom-Adams.
35. Wasik, B.H. The context of the classroom and children's knowing. Paper presented at the School Readiness: Scientific Perspectives Conference. Columbia, MD. January 24-26, 1992.
36. Ogbu, J. Minority coping responses and school experience. Journal of Psychohistory (1991) 18(4):433-456.
37. Frankenberg, E., Lee, C., and Orfield, G. A multiracial society with segregated schools: Are we losing the dream? Cambridge, MA: The Civil Rights Project, Harvard University, 2003.
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39. McNeely, C., Nonnemaker, J., and Blum, R. Promoting school connectedness: Evidence from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. Journal of School Health (2002) 72:138-146;
40. Roeser, R., Eccles, J., and Strobel, K. Linking the study of schooling and mental health: Selected issues and empirical illustrations at the level of the individual. Educational Psychologist (1998) 33:153-176.
41. Connell, J.P., and Wellborn, J.G. Competence, autonomy, and relatedness: A motivational analysis of self-system processes. Minnesota Symposium on Child Psychology (1991) 23:43-77;
42. Eccles, J., and Midgley, C. Stage/environment fit: Developmentally appropriate classrooms for young adolescents. Research on Motivation and Education (1989) 3:139-186.
43. Goodman, R.F. A view from the middle: Life through the eyes of middle childhood. Sesame Workshop, 2001. Available online at www.AboutOurKids.org.
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47. See note 27, Tharp.
48. Rumbaut, R.G. Children of immigrants and their achievement: Relating family and school to engagement, aspirations, and achievement. CEIC Review (1991) 10(4):9-11, 13.
49. Portes, A., and Zhou, M. The second generation: Segmented assimilation and its variants. Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science (1993) 530:74-96. See also note 5, Suárez-Orozco and Suárez-Orozco, 1995 and 2001.
50. Ogbu, J., and Simmons, H. Voluntary and involuntary minorities: A cultural-ecological theory of school performance with some implications for education. Anthropology and Education Quarterly (1998) 29:155-188. Phrases like "oppositional" or "adversarial identities" are used by Ogbu and Simmons to describe the adaptations of some children of color toward school and education.
51. Mahoney, J.L., and Stattin, H. Leisure activities and adolescent antisocial behavior: The role of structure and social context. Journal of Adolescence (2000) 23:113-127.
52. Jarrett, R.L. Resilience among low-income African-American youth: An ethnographic perspective. Ethos (1997) 25:1-12.
53. Though research shows positive changes in adjustment related to participation in structured leisure activities for middle-class youth, such participation has also been found to be negatively associated with GPA for low-income youth. For example, in one study, African American children received lower academic grades during fifth grade when they spent more cumulative after-school time playing coached sports and less time socializing (but they were also rated as being better adjusted emotionally). See McHale, S.M., Crouter, A.C., and Tucker, C.J. Free-time activities in middle childhood: Links with adjustment in early adolescence. Child Development (2001) 72:1764-1778;
54. Posner, J., and Vandell, D. After-school activities and the development of low-income urban children: A longitudinal study. Developmental Psychology (1999) 35(3):868-879.
55. Jarrett, R.L. Successful parenting in high-risk neighborhoods. The Future of Children: When School Is Out (Fall 1999) 9(2):45-50;
56. Pettit, G.S., Dodge, K.A., and Meece, D.W. The impact of afterschool peer contact on early adolescent externalizing problems is moderated by parental monitoring, perceived neighborhood safety, and prior adjustment. Child Development (1999) 70(3):768-778;
57. Posner, J.K., and Vandell, D.L. Low-income children's after-school care: Are there beneficial effects of after-school programs? Child Development (1994) 65:440-456;
58. Vandell, D.L., and Shumow, L. After-school child care programs. The Future of Children: When School Is Out (Fall 1999) 9(2):64-80.
59. Rodriguez, C. A cost benefit analysis of subjective factors affecting assimilation: Puerto Ricans. Ethnicity (1975) 2:66-80;
60. Tatum, B.D. Assimilation blues: Black families in a white community. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1987.
61. The researchers measured neighborhood collective efficacy (that is, social cohesion among neighbors combined with a willingness to intervene on behalf of the common good and not strict measures of socioeconomic status) and found it to be positively associated with between-neighborhood reliability (p<.001) and negatively correlated with levels of violence (p<.001). Collective efficacy signi ficantly (p<.001) and positively related to friendship and kinship ties (r =.49), organizational participation (r =.45), and neighborhood services (r =.21), whereas residential stability was negatively associated with levels of violence (t = 6.95). See Sampson, R.J., Raudenbush, S.W., and Earls, F. Neighborhoods and violent crime: A multilevel study of collective efficacy. Science (1997) 277:918-924.
62. See note 38, Rodriguez; and note 38, Tatum.
63. Ogbu, J.U. Origins of human competence: A cultural-ecological perspective. Child Development (1981) 52:413-429.
64. Roberts, D.F., Foehr, U.G., Rideout, V.J., and Brodie, M. Kids & media @ the new millennium: A comprehensive national analysis of children's media use. Menlo Park, CA: The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, November 1999, p. 20.
65. Huston, A.C., and Wright, J.D., Mass media and children's development. In Handbook of child psychology: Child psychology in practice. Vol. 4, 5th ed. W. Damon, I.D. Sigel, and K.A. Renninger, eds. New York: John Wiley and Sons, 1998, pp. 999-1058. See especially, pp. 1003-1004.
66. Papert, S. Mindstorms: Children, computers, and powerful ideas. New York: Basic Books, 1980.
67. Orleans, M., and Laney, M.C. Children's computer use in the home: Isolation or sociation. Social Science Computer Review (2000) 18:56-72.
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69. Murray, J.P. Television and youth: 25 years of research and controversy. Boys Town, NE: The Boys Town Center for the Study of Youth Development, 1980, pp. 11-24.
70. Wartella, E.A., and Jennings, N. Children and computers: New technology-Old concerns. The Future of Children: Children and Computer Technology (Fall/Winter 2000) 10(2):31-43.
71. See note 43, Huston and Wright, p. 1037.
72. Grutter v. Bollinger, 123 S. Ct. 2325 (2003).
73. See note 11, García Coll, et al.
74. See note 19, García Coll and Magnuson.
75. García Coll, C.T., and Meyer, E. The socio-cultural context of infant development. In Handbook of infant mental health. C.H. Zeanah, ed. New York: Guilford Press, 1993, pp 56-69.
76. Bronfenbrenner, U. Summary. In Beginnings: The social and affective development of black children. M.B. Spencer, G.K. Brookins, and W.R. Allens, eds. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 1985, pp. 67-73.
77. Barbarin, O.A. Coping and resilience: Exploring the inner lives of African American children. Journal of Black Psychology (1993) 19:423-446.
78. Thomas, D.D. Cultural diversity: Understanding the variability within. Paper presented at the Eighth National Conference of Parent Care. New Orleans, LA. May 1992.
79. See note 54, Bronfenbrenner. See also note 19, García Coll and Magnuson; and note 9, García Coll and Magnuson.
80. McAdoo, H.P. Upward mobility and parenting in middle-income black families. Journal of Black Psychology (1981) 8:122.
81. Brookins, G.K. Culture, ethnicity, and bicultural competence: Implications for children with chronic illness and disability. Pediatrics (May 1993) 91:1056-1062.
82. Cooper, C.R., Jackson, J.F., Azmitia, M., and Lopez, E.M. Multiple selves, multiple worlds: Three useful strategies for research with ethnic minority youth on identity, relationships, and opportunity structures. In Studying minority adolescents: Conceptual, methodological, and theoretical issues. V.C. McLoyd, and L. Steinberg, eds. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 1998, pp. 111-125.
83. See note 11, García Coll, et al.
84. Groce, N.E., and Zola, I.K. Multiculturalism, chronic illness, and disability. Pediatrics (May 1993) 91:1048-1055.
85. Delgado-Gaitan, C. Socializing young children in Mexican-American families: An intergenerational perspective. In Cross-cultural roots of minority child development. P.M. Greenfield, and R.R. Cocking, eds. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 1994, pp. 55-86.
86. See note 19, García Coll and Magnuson.
87. For further discussion of the strong sense of family obligation among some minority and immigrant groups, see the article by Fuligni and Hardway in this journal issue.
88. García Coll, C., Szalacha, L., and Palacios, N. Children of Dominican, Portuguese, and Cambodian immigrant families: Academic attitudes and pathways during middle childhood. In Developmental pathways through middle childhood: Rethinking contexts and diversity as resources. C.R. Cooper, C.T. García Coll, T. Bartko, et al., eds. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, forthcoming. The study was a two-cohort, short-term longitudinal study of over 300 families with children in either the first or fourth grade at the time of recruitment.
89. This is the opposite of what has been previously encountered in other samples of minority children. See Blumenfeld, P.C., Secada, W., and Modell, J. School engagement of inner city students during middle childhood. In Developmental pathways through middle childhood: Rethinking contexts and diversity as resources. C.R. Cooper, C.T. García Coll, T. Bartko, et al., eds. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, forthcoming.
90. Rumbaut, R.G. Ties that bind: Immigration and immigrant families in the United States. In Immigration and the family. A. Booth, A.C. Crouter, and N. Landale, eds. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 1997, pp. 3-46.
91. Diaz, R., and Klinger, C. Towards an explanatory model of the interaction between bilingualism and cognitive development. In Language processing in bilingual children. E. Bialystok, ed. Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University Press, 1991.
92. Ramirez, M. Psychology of the Americas: Mestizo perspectives on personality and mental health. New York, NY: Pergamon Press, 1983.
93. See note 60, Cooper, et al.; and Cooper, C.R., Jackson, J.F., Azmitia, M., et al. Bridging students' multiple worlds: African American and Latino youth in academic outreach programs. In Changing schools for changing students: An anthology of research on language minorities. R.F. Macias, and R.G. Garcia Ramos, eds. Santa Barbara: University of California Linguistic Minority Research Institute, 1995, pp. 245-267.
94. Waters, M.C. Ethnic and racial identities of second-generation black immigrants in New York City. International Migration Review (1994) 28(4):795-820;
95. Waters, M.C. Black identities: West Indian dreams and American realities. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1999.
96. For example, programs such as the New Hope intervention provide families with a series of options from which they can choose what best fits their daily routines and needs. Researchers have found that families differ widely in which aspects of the program they choose to participate in. See Huston, A., Miller, C., Richburg-Hayes, L., et al. Five-year results of a program to reduce poverty and reform welfare. New York: Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation, 2003
97. Huston, A., Duncan, G., Granger, R., et al. Work-based anti-poverty programs for parents can enhance the school performance and social behavior of children. Child Development (2001) 72(1):318-336.
98. For example, the documentation of the development of multiple, overlapping (and sometimes even contradictory) ethnic identities during middle childhood can contribute to the understanding of social identities in general, and augment developmental theories regarding identity, which presently begin with adolescence. See Ruble, D.N., Alvarez, J., Bachman, M., et al. The development of a sense of "we": The emergence and implications of children's collective identity. In The development of the social self. M. Bennett and F. Sani, eds. New York, NY: Psychology Press, 2004.
99. In Latino populations, higher levels of maternal education and socioeconomic status are related to parenting practices and conceptualizations that are closer to Anglo standards than to traditional Latino practices. See Gutierrez, J., and Sameroff, A. Determinants of complexity in Mexican-American mothers' conceptions of child development. Child Development (1990) 61:384-394;
100. Laosa, L.M. Maternal teaching strategies in Chicano and Anglo-American families: The influence of culture and education on maternal behavior. Child Development (1984) 51:759-765.
101. Furstenberg, F., Cook, T., Eccles, J., et al. Managing to make it: Urban families and adolescent success. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000;
102. Jarrett, R.L., Roy, K.M., and Burton, L. Fathers in the "hood": Insights from qualitative research on low-income, African American men. In Handbook on fatherhood: Interdisciplinary perspectives. C.T. LeMonda, and N. Cabrera, eds. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 2002, pp. 211-248;
103. Burton, L.M., and Jarrett, R.L. In the mix, yet on the margins: The place of families in urban neighborhood and child development research. Journal of Marriage and the Family (2000) 62:444-465;
104. Jarrett, R.L. Neighborhood effects models: A view from the neighborhood. Research in Community Sociology (2000) 10:305-323.
105. Opportunity structures refer to the distribution of opportunities to achieve goals in a social system. Thus, there are economic opportunity structures (such as access to employment, sufficient wages, and publicly funded workforce systems); educational opportunity structures (such as access to good schools and scholarship programs); and political opportunity structures (such as the formation of social and political alliances and representative elections).