Well-being : positive development across the life course

The chief aim of this series is to provide integrated perspectives on supradisciplinary themes in psychology. The first volume in the series was devoted to a consideration of Psychological Development from Infancy: the second volume to Comparative Methods in Psychology: volumes three, four, and five examined relations between Psychology and Its Allied Disciplines in the humanities, the social sciences, and the natural sciences: volume six concerned itself with Sensitive Periods in Development: volume seven focused on Interaction in Human Development: volume eight addressed Cultural Approaches to Parenting: and volume nine examined the intersection of Child Development and Behavioral Pediatrics. The Center for Child Well-being appreciates this approach and, under it aegis, pursued an in-depth interdisciplinary assessment of life course well-being. The Center focuses on the next frontier of developing strengths from birth through adolescence and explores how to nurture children?s thriving in all aspects of life?the physical, socioemotional, and cognitive. Toward that end, the Center gathered scholars, practitioners, public health professionals, and principals in the child development community to examine, from their respective disciplinary perspectives and expertise, the common question, ?What are the central elements of child wellbeing? the fundamental strengths that support children?s early health and development and sustain positive development throughout the life course?? In response, this group prepared analytic reviews of key positive capacities for well-being. The Center then used an experts? work group meeting and supplemental discussion groups at a larger conference to refine these written reviews. Revisions of that process became chapters for this tenth book in the Crosscurrents in Contemporary Psychology series, Well-Being: Positive Development Across the Life Course.