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16 - The Role of Discourse in the Transformation of Parent–Adolescent Relationships
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- By Manfred Hofer, Department of Psychology, University of Mannheim, Mannheim, Germany
- Edited by Anne-Nelly Perret-Clermont, Université de Neuchâtel, Switzerland, Clotilde Pontecorvo, Università degli Studi di Roma 'La Sapienza', Italy, Lauren B. Resnick, University of Pittsburgh, Tania Zittoun, Université de Neuchâtel, Switzerland, Barbara Burge, University of Pittsburgh
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- Book:
- Joining Society
- Published online:
- 08 January 2010
- Print publication:
- 17 November 2003, pp 241-251
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- Chapter
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Summary
The importance of verbal interaction is increasingly being recognized, particularly by social constructivists. However, the quantitative analysis of verbal exchange is not yet an established research paradigm. Research on discourse with older children, adolescents, and their parents has proved fruitful and has provided an impetus for the quantitative analysis of discourse. The research presented in this chapter draws on an approach that views discourse as a special kind of behavioral interaction. This chapter discusses why it is so important to examine discourse data in a quantitative way and then examines both conflict and planning discourse between parents and adolescents with several different coding systems. The use of multiple systems allows the examination of four specific questions. First, do patterns of parent–adolescent discourse differ from discourse patterns found in other relationships? Second, are the specific patterns of interaction that occur in discussions between parents and adolescents stable over different types of discourse? Third, can discourse help us to view the process by which individuation progresses within family relationships? Finally, are observed interaction patterns consistent with participants' subjective accounts of the interaction and relationship? The answers to these questions provide objective, generalizable evidence on the process by which adolescents and parents deal with the individuation process through everyday interactions.
The Individuation Theory Framework
The adolescent–parent relationship can be regarded as a prototypical situation for the study of discourse within a social-constructivist, individuation theory framework.
6 - Community Service and Social Cognitive Development in German Adolescents
- Edited by Miranda Yates, Covenant House California, James Youniss, Catholic University of America, Washington DC
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- Book:
- Roots of Civic Identity
- Published online:
- 04 August 2010
- Print publication:
- 13 November 1998, pp 114-134
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Summary
This chapter addresses German youth's participation in community service in four steps. First, it relates the German system of market economy to some of the special characteristics of community service in this country after unification. Second, it discusses possible effects of community service on adolescents’ development. Third, it presents an empirical study that is based on the idea that community service may have positive effects on adolescent identity formation and improve adolescents’ understanding of societal structures. The chapter closes with some reflections about the context of community service for adolescent development in German society.
Community Service in Germany
The concepts of “community service” and “volunteering” used interchangeably in this chapter do not have exact equivalents in the German language. The expressions gemeinnuetzige Taetigkeit and soziales Ehrenamt come closest. They traditionally describe voluntary and continuous unpaid work within an organization that is performed in the interest of others during one's spare time, the soziales Ehrenamt having a higher degree of organization and obligation (Gaskin, Smith & Paulwitz, 1996; Oik, 1992). In the last years, structural changes in the meaning of the two concepts weakened the foregoing criteria. Financial rewards are diverse and include expenses and pocket money. Community service activities in Germany also have a strong leisure component and only some are designed for direct promotion of public interests. And the voluntary criterion applies to most but not all cases meant by the two terms. For instance, “civil service” in 1998 is a 13-month engagement in social work as an alternative to 10-months obligatory military service for young males.