To be known, and to know others, is critical to all social relationships. This topic of 'disclosure processes' not only pertains to people's disclosure of daily thoughts and emotions, but to their disclosure of many controversial problems in contemporary society, such as divorce, AIDS and sexual abuse. The bulk of research has focused on disclosure processes in adults and relatively little attention has been given to that phenomena in children and adolescents. The collection of chapters in this book redresses the balance by systematically examining disclosure processes in children and adolescents. This covers the knowledge of how, to whom, and the conditions under which children and adolescents reveal their personal thoughts and emotions.

"...apt to be as successful as its predecessors [in the Cambridge Studies in Social and Emotional Development series] in heralding a new era in the developmental study of interpersonal relationships. This volume is accessible and engaging to those new to the study of disclosure processes and social relationships, and at the same time providing a provocative tour de force for scholars engaged in research on these topics. The work goes beyond a comprehensive review of classic and current research and theory, advancing an inclusive perspective on processes and variations in self-disclosure during childhood and adolescence. A luminary cast of contributors....identifies nascent issues and ascending investigations likely to dominate the discussion of self-disclosure well into the next century." Brett Laursen and Margaret Ferreira, Journal of Adolescence