Family and Contexts of Development: Challenges in Latin America

Within developmental psychology, it has been proven that families are a significant context for development. It is also well known that in Latin America, families represent a deeply rooted societal value, yet the continent has often been overlooked within the research base. Family and Contexts of Development offers an eco-cultural and contextualized contribution focusing on how the family functions as a context for development in Latin American throughout the life span. Editors Mariano Rosabal-Coto and Javier Tapia-Balladares bring together leading researchers in the field to present evidence of how both family and culture are prominent dimensions that help us understand development across different life stages. The family unit concentrates dynamics and roles as a core structure, shaped by culture and transmitting culture, through everyday occurrences and specific events. The volume features quantitative, qualitative, and experimental methodologies and draws on cases from Mexico, Colombia, Costa Rica, Argentina, and Brazil. Each chapter illustrates that families can play a double role, either as a risk, or a protective factor in development. With the rapid changes to society that are unique to Latin America, new forms and types of families are constantly constructed and challenged. Regardless, this book will highlight that these types of families, in their continuity and in their disruptions, remain as a distinct platform for human development.