The Cambridge Handbook of Parenting: Interdisciplinary Research and Application

Parenting is a critical influence on the development of children across the globe. This handbook brings together scholars with expertise on parenting science and interventions for a comprehensive review of current research. It begins with foundational theories and research topics, followed by sections on parenting children at different ages, factors that affect parenting such as parental mental health or socioeconomic status, and parenting children with different characteristics such as depressed and anxious children or youth who identify as LGBTQ. It concludes with a section on policy implications, as well as prevention and intervention programs that target parenting as a mechanism of change. Global perspectives and the cultural diversity of families are highlighted throughout. Offering in-depth analysis of key topics such as risky adolescent behavior, immigration policy, father engagement, family involvement in education, and balancing childcare and work, this is a vital resource for understanding the most effective policies to support parents in raising healthy children.

Amanda Sheffield Morris is Regents Professor and George Kaiser Family Foundation Chair in the Department of Psychology, Oklahoma State University, USA. She is co-author of Adverse and Protective Childhood Experiences: A Developmental Perspective (2020) and co-editor of Authoritative Parenting: Nurturance and Discipline for Optimal Child Development (2013).

Julia Mendez Smith is Professor of Psychology at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, USA. She is also a clinical-community psychologist and a licensed mental health professional in the state of North Carolina. She has published widely on childcare access, school readiness, and parent and family engagement, and she has worked in partnership with Head Start programs and local schools for over twenty years.