Adolescents from immigrant families have provided scientists with several lessons about both their own experiences and the nature of adolescence more generally. These insights include: the remarkable developmental flexibility of youth, particularly in the face of social and cultural change; the desire and capacity for adolescents to contribute to their families and communities; the aspirations of young people to succeed economically as adults; and, how adolescents' flexibility, contributions, and aspirations can be constrained by socioeconomic, ethnic, and racial stratification systems. Effectively communicating these lessons to policy-makers and practitioners should be a key element in efforts to support the development of young people from immigrant families.

About the speaker: Andrew J. Fuligni, Ph.D., is Professor in the Department of Psychology and the Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences at UCLA. He is also the Director of the Adolescent Development Lab at UCLA. Fuligni earned his B.S. from Cornell University and his Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology at the University of Michigan. His research focuses on the interaction between sociocultural experiences and biobehavioral development among adolescents from diverse ethnic, immigrant, and economic backgrounds, with a current focus on youth’s prosocial behavior, contributions to their social worlds, and sleep. As the Co-Director of the UCLA Center for the Developing Adolescent, Dr. Fuligni works to translate and disseminate the science of adolescence to policymakers and practitioners to support efforts that promote the healthy development of diverse youth.

The winners of the Department of Psychology Diversity Awards will be announced following Dr. Fuligni's presentation.