A data-rich analysis of how the four inter-related crises of 2020 — the COVID-19 pandemic, the economic collapse and K-shaped recovery, the clashes over the legacy of racism and policing, and assaults on the legitimacy of democratic institutions (abetted by conspiracy theories) — shaped not only the 2020 election, but also the future of our democracy. The 2020 election cycle was one of the most tumultuous in the nation's history. Early in the cycle, a global pandemic hit the US, paralyzing much of the economy and raising a multitude of questions about how people would go about voting. Then, beginning in late spring, a series of police brutality cases set off a nationwide wave of protests and civil disturbances related to racial justice concerns. In the final phase, the president of the United States refused to accept the results and incited his followers to storm the US Capitol. How did all of these momentous events shape voters' opinions? And what impact did they have on the outcome? To answer these questions, Kathleen Hall Jamieson and her collaborators surveyed 9,000 Americans over the course of the year to determine how voters reacted to the events on the ground, the campaigns' attempts at persuasion, and the post-election chaos that followed Biden's victory. Generally, American voters saw the multitude of crises through the lens of their polarized partisan predispositions. But why? Jamieson and her co-authors first stress that America has multiple electorates, and they are exposed to different informational environments. The divergent messages they received shaped not only their vote choice, but also how they made sense of these crises. Interestingly, though, while many voters were locked in place by their partisan priors, a majority of those who ended up voting for either Biden or Trump were unsure of their choice and whether they would actually vote at some point during the year. What led to both the wavering in people's choices and the attitudes they eventually adopted were in large part due to the differing media environments enveloping them: the messages from the campaigns, from their family and friends, as well from those in mass and social media. But this is not a simple story of "echo chambers," where individuals are immersed in only one type of media — far from it. The distinct media environments in which these electorates experienced the election were in fact complex and varied, and the interaction between these different types of media was key. Indeed, most voters were subject to cross-cutting information pressures and not only one type of partisan source. This book's focus on the ebb and flow of the campaign over time and the centrality of wavering voters makes this an authoritative and essential account of one of the most momentous American elections ever.

A data-rich analysis of how the four inter-related crises of 2020 — the COVID-19 pandemic, the economic collapse and K-shaped recovery, the clashes over the legacy of racism and policing, and assaults on the legitimacy of democratic institutions (abetted by conspiracy theories) — shaped not only the 2020 election, but also the future of our democracy. The 2020 election cycle was one of the most tumultuous in the nation's history. Early in the cycle, a global pandemic hit the US, paralyzing much of the economy and raising a multitude of questions about how people would go about voting. Then, beginning in late spring, a series of police brutality cases set off a nationwide wave of protests and civil disturbances related to racial justice concerns. In the final phase, the president of the United States refused to accept the results and incited his followers to storm the US Capitol. How did all of these momentous events shape voters' opinions? And what impact did they have on the outcome? To answer these questions, Kathleen Hall Jamieson and her collaborators surveyed 9,000 Americans over the course of the year to determine how voters reacted to the events on the ground, the campaigns' attempts at persuasion, and the post-election chaos that followed Biden's victory. Generally, American voters saw the multitude of crises through the lens of their polarized partisan predispositions. But why? Jamieson and her co-authors first stress that America has multiple electorates, and they are exposed to different informational environments. The divergent messages they received shaped not only their vote choice, but also how they made sense of these crises. Interestingly, though, while many voters were locked in place by their partisan priors, a majority of those who ended up voting for either Biden or Trump were unsure of their choice and whether they would actually vote at some point during the year. What led to both the wavering in people's choices and the attitudes they eventually adopted were in large part due to the differing media environments enveloping them: the messages from the campaigns, from their family and friends, as well from those in mass and social media. But this is not a simple story of "echo chambers," where individuals are immersed in only one type of media — far from it. The distinct media environments in which these electorates experienced the election were in fact complex and varied, and the interaction between these different types of media was key. Indeed, most voters were subject to cross-cutting information pressures and not only one type of partisan source. This book's focus on the ebb and flow of the campaign over time and the centrality of wavering voters makes this an authoritative and essential account of one of the most momentous American elections ever.

While it is widely accepted that we are products of our genes and environment, misconceptions about the power of genes to control our destiny continue to dominate our discourse. This volume contains the latest theories and evidence supporting the highly dynamic inter-relation between genes and environments as they influence the development, mental health, and substance use of adolescents. Written by researchers who are leading the way toward this new understanding, this text provides overviews and analysis of this emerging field. The chapters discuss the latest approaches to gene-environment relations, including gene-environment interaction, gene-environment correlation, epigenetics, and environmental regulation of gene expression. The application of these concepts to the prevention of adolescent mental health conditions, such as drug use, conduct disorder, depression, and schizophrenia, is included. Controversies in the implications of these approaches are also discussed.
The chapters are written in accessible language and will relevant to anyone interested in the mental health and development of adolescents, including researchers and practitioners in behavioral, social and medical fields. A final chapter by the editors assesses the implications of these new approaches for future mental health research and policy.

Recent advances in our understanding of the human brain suggest that adolescence is a unique period of development during which both environmental and genetic influences can leave a lasting impression. To advance the goal of integrating brain and prevention science, two areas of research which do not usually communicate with one another, the Annenberg Public Policy Center's Adolescent Risk Communication Institute held a conference with the purpose of producing an integrated volume on this interdisciplinary area. Presenters/chapter contributors were asked to address two questions: What neurodevelopmental processes in children and adolescents could be altered so that mental disorders might be prevented? And what interventions or life experiences might be able to introduce such changes? The book has a 5-part structure: biological and social universals in development; characteristics of brain and behaviour in development; effects of early maltreatment and stress on brain development; effects of stress and other environmental influences during adolescence on brain development; and reversible orders of brain development. The twenty chapters include contributions from some of the most well-known researchers in the area.

Media and the Well-Being of Children and Adolescents brings together many of the field's most important scholars and media professionals to present cutting-edge theory and empirical research on both the benefits and risks to youth development. It examines the role that media play in the every-day lives of young people and their families, and considers both traditional media such as television and movies as well as "new" digital media, such as video games, cell phones, and the Internet. The volume is divided into four parts. Part One provides up-to-date trends on children and adolescents' access to media in the home, as well as the time they spend with television, computers, and the Internet. Part Two presents research that highlights the potentially negative impact of age-inappropriate or excess media use on children's physical, cognitive, social, and emotional well-being. Part Three offers examples of how media enhance children's education, health, and social connections. Part Four explores implications for the creation of high-quality, enriching content that speaks to the needs and interests of young people today. The volume's interdisciplinary perspective acknowledges the many controversies surrounding the effects of media on youth, and offers a balanced view of the challenges and opportunities that media represent for healthy development. The book is intended to be a resource for students and scholars working within education, developmental psychology, public health, and communication. Additionally, it speaks to media professionals who seek to create content that enriches the lives of children and adolescents.

The presidential elections of 2000 and 2004 were two of the most contested and dramatic in our nation's history. During the election seasons of 2000 and 2004, the Annenberg Public Policy Center conducted the largest studies ever undertaken of the American electorate-the National Annenberg Election Survey (NAES). Capturing Campaign Dynamics, 2000 and 2004 provides the data from these two surveys to the general public as well as useful tools for analyzing and interpreting the findings. Featuring rolling cross-sectional analysis, this book walks researchers through different strategies for using this type of survey research to understand campaign dynamics. An important feature of the volume is its explanation of the use of time series analysis to study the dynamic effects of political events as they unfold during presidential elections. The application of this methodology will uncover new insights into the time-dependent processes that unfold during election campaigns in ways that have not been possible before NAES. The book includes a CD-ROM of the NAES codebooks and data, featuring more than 200,000 interviews with adults living in the United States. The data contained on the NAES CD-ROM are in both SPSS format and tab-delimited format for use with other statistical software. Capturing Campaign Dynamics, 2000 and 2004 is ideal for courses in survey research methods in political science, communications studies, and analysis of public opinion. It will also be of great interest to scholars and professionals, such as pollsters and political consultants.

Many of those who frequently interact with adolescents have resigned themselves to the fact that the period between childhood and adulthood is inevitably characterized by risky and unhealthy behavior and also a time when previously healthy children will experience the first signs of mental disorder. Likewise, the popular media often present the adolescent brain as a work in progress, unprepared for the developmental changes that drive unhealthy behavior, and vulnerable to the genetic influences that seem to undermine mental health. But in the last decade, scientists have come to grasp the plasticity of the adolescent brain. Although important findings from both animal and human research show the effects of early maltreatment on brain development and how these effects can be transmitted across generations, new advances in our understanding also promise strategies for reversing these and other genetic predispositions. Research now suggests that mental health professionals and concerned parents may be able to take advantage of adolescent brain plasticity by fortifying strengths, avoiding maladaptive behaviors, and counteracting genes that would otherwise promote mental disorder. At one time considered mutually exclusive, according to the argument diligently supported by Daniel Romer and Elaine Walker, nature and nurture actually work in concert, shaping the development of the mature individual. The implications for our views of the treatability of mental disorder could be dramatic. A central question which this volume addresses is: With treatment and preventive interventions, can we enhance healthy functioning, prevent potential maladaptive behavior, and alter the developmental course ofpsychological disorders? In June 2005, a diverse group of psychologists, neuroscientists, and researchers came together at University of Pennsylvanias Annenberg Public Policy Center to discuss this question theoretically and practically from a variety of perspectives. The presentations from this fruitful meeting have been synthesized into Adolescent Psychopathohlogy and the Developing Brain: Integrating Brain and Prevention Science, a collection that offers prevention and neuroscience researchers the knowledge and background to embark on the study of developmental psychopathology, and the rationale to chart a new course.

In The Changing Portrayal of Adolescents in the Media since 1950, leading scholars analyze the emergence of youth culture in music and powerful trends in gender and ethnic-racial representation, sexuality, substance use, violence, and suicide portrayla in the media. This book illuminates the evolution of teen portrayal, the potential consequences of these changes, and the ways policy-makers and parents can respond.

"What an extraordinary volume! This book brings together current research integrating adolescent risk and protection across a wide range of topics and disciplines. It is a major contribution to the field."

? Robert Wm. Blum, MD, MPH, PhD, Professor and Director, Center for Adolescent Health and Development, University of Minnesota