SRA From Birth to Maturity: A Roundtable on the First 22 Years

Chairs: W. Andrew Collins, University of Minnesota; Jeanne Brooks-Gunn, Columbia University

Abstract
This roundtable discussion is the first formal consideration of the history and future of SRA as a part of a biennial meeting. The 2008 meeting is an opportune time to share with current members (and other attendees) how SRA has developed over time and what it (and the study of adolescence in general) will likely look like in years to come. Five participants, all former SRA presidents, will reflect on the scientific and social factors in the founding of the Society, its development as an organization, its significance to both research and policy relevant to adolescents, and the prospects of the organization and the study of adolescence in the coming decades. Discussion between participants and attendees will be a key feature of the session, as will recognition of key contributors to the organizational success of SRA.

Biography
W. Andrew Collins was president of SRA in 2000-2002 after previously serving as chair of the Long-Range Planning Committee. He is Morse-Alumni Distinguished Teaching Professor of Child Development and Psychology at the Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota. A co-investigator (with Byron Egeland and Alan Sroufe) on the Minnesota Longitudinal Study of Adaptation and Risk, he has published articles and books on mass-media influences, parent-adolescent relationships, and romantic relationships in adolescence and early adulthood. He received SRCD’s Award for Distinguished Contributions to Education in Child Development in 2005. He served as associate editor of Child Development from 1989-1995 and is currently editor of Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development.

Biography
Jeanne Brooks-Gunn served as SRA president 1994-1996. Recipient of the Society’s John P. Hill Award for Excellence in Theory Development and Research on Adolescents, she is the author of more than 300 published articles and four books. She also has received awards for both basic and policy-oriented research and for her significant contributions to public policy from APA, APS, SRCD, Society for Social Work Research, the American Academy of Political and Social Science, and the American Sociological Association. She is the Virginia and Leonard Marx Professor of Child Development at Teachers College and the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Columbia University, where she is the Founding Director of the Columbia University Institute on Child and Family Policy.

Panelist Biographies
Laurence Steinberg is the Distinguished University Professor and Laura H. Carnell Professor of Psychology at Temple University. He is the current President of APA’s Division of Developmental Psychology, a Past-President of SRA, and the author or co-author of more than a dozen books and 250 scholarly articles on growth and development during the teenage years. He has been the recipient of numerous honors, including SRA’s Hill Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Study of Adolescence; the Society for Adolescent Medicine’s Gallagher Lectureship; and the APA’s Bronfenbrenner Award for Lifetime Contribution to Developmental Psychology in the Service of Science and Society.

Anne C Petersen has 25 years experience as researcher and faculty member, 13 as academic administrator, 3 as Deputy Director/COO of NSF, and 10 as a top foundation executive. As scientist, she has 12 books, over 200 scientific articles/chapters, and many honors including IOM membership. Her research focused on puberty and psychosocial changes during adolescence, including cognition, depression, and gender differences. Her 3 degrees are from U Chicago. She has led several scientific societies (including SRA where she was a founding member), academic and community boards and committees. She is currently Deputy Director, CASBS; Psychology Professor, Stanford U; Global Philanthropy Alliance President.

Elizabeth J. Susman is the Jean Phillips Shibley Professor of Biobehavioral Health in the Department of Biobehavioral Health, at Penn State. Dr. Susman received a Ph.D. Human Development and did postdoctoral training in Developmental Psychology and did a postdoctoral fellowship at the National Institute of Mental Health and the National Cancer Institute. Her research program combines behavioral neuroscience, endocrinology and developmental psychology. Dr. Susman was co-editor of the Journal of Research on Adolescence and has been a consulting editor for numerous scientific journals and has been a member of National Institute of Health review groups. Dr. Susman is the Past President of the Society for Research on Adolescence.