Developmental Science

Abstract: A Practical Theology of Adolescent Discipleship: Integrating Developmental Science and Theology to Guide Congregational Ministry William Haslim Doctor of Ministry School of Theology, Fuller Theological Seminary 2019 This project was developed to help Community Presbyterian Church of Danville, California, establish a more holistic and formative approach to adolescent discipleship by focusing on the developmental needs of young people and leveraging greater congregational support to address those needs. A practical theology of adolescent discipleships was built around both biblical mandates and insights from the developmental sciences. The integration of these perspectives offered greater clarity on adolescence as a crucial context for ministry. The alignment between the normative developmental tasks of adolescence and the formative directives for discipleship found in Scripture illuminated those aspects of personal and spiritual formation that must become the focus of adolescent discipleship. Research revealing the levels of social support adolescents need to thrive in these developmental processes indicate that effective ministry with teens requires the engagement of not just those serving in the church’s student ministries department but the engagement of the congregation as a whole. To facilitate that broader engagement, an ecclesiology focused on the biblical metaphors of family and adoption has been proposed as a means to shape a church culture that prioritizes active efforts to welcome adolescents into the life of the church. This project initiated an array of strategies at Community Presbyterian Church designed to strengthen the church’s approach to adolescent discipleship in ways that take seriously the developmental needs of adolescents and the biblical mandate for the whole church to share in the responsibility and calling to embody God’s adoption of younger brothers and sisters into the family of faith. These strategies, which targeted both the student ministries department and the congregation, have been successfully implemented with preliminary indications of effectiveness. However, the longer-term results have yet to be assessed, while the implementation of this praxis continues to be refined and reinforced. Content Reader: Chap Clark, PhD

Abstract: Developmental treatment approaches for young children with autism are defined as those that apply the principles of developmental science within the intervention, use typical developmental sequences as the framework for assessment and program planning, and are relationship-based, child-centered, and play-based. This chapter describes eleven of these branded developmental treatment models and systematically reviews the empirical evidence for each: Denver Model; Early Start Denver Model (ESDM); Developmental Individual Differenences Relationship-Based Model (DIR/Floortime), Hanen’s More than Words; Joint Attention Mediated Learning (JAML); Joint Attention Symbolic Play Engagement and Regulation (JASPER); Relationship Development Intervention (RDI); Responsive Education and Prelinguistic Milieu Teaching (RPMT); Responsive Teaching (RT); Social Communication, Emotional Regulation and Transactional Support (SCERTS); Treatment and Education of Autistic and Related Communication Handicapped Children (TEACCH). Each treatment approach is reviewed on two levels: (1) to identify the developmental components encompassed by each; and (2) to determine the robustness of the empirical studies of each treatment approach using Nathan and Gorman’s (2002, 2007) criteria for establishing empirical support. The empirical evidence for each approach is summarized and study limitations are considered. The chapter concludes with recommendations for the future, both in terms of additional efficacy and effectiveness studies, as well as the development or modification of treatment approaches to meet the developmental needs of younger children with autism.

Abstract: We review progress in theory and research on resilience among youth from birth to young adulthood. Key models of resilience are presented as implemented in recent empirical research and several challenges are discussed. Next, we introduce the contribution of ecological and system perspectives for the study of resilience. We suggest that such theories are important for stimulating new research and organizing existing data, and that recent advances in these theories have expanded the potential for understanding resilience across the lifespan. We follow with a review of intervention and prevention programs that promote resilience. This includes the introduction and discussion of preventive intervention programs suited for families and youth exposed to adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). Last, we introduce new directions in conceptualizing and studying resilience. We suggest that evolutionary developmental theory may usher in a new way of thinking about resilience, bearing significant implications for resilience and developmental science.