Adolescence in the Pacific Island Societies (Association for Social Anthropology in Oceania Monograph Series) (ASAO MONOGRAPH) - Tapa dura

The essays in this study take an anthropological approach to understanding adolescence in the Islands of the Pacific. They explore the biological basis of teenage rebellion, the role of the adolescent in Pacific Island cultures, and teenagers' influence as agents of change.

How do adolescents in greatly divergent societies see and experience the world? As the first comparative study of adolescence, this book takes an anthropological approach to understanding adolescence in the rapidly changing area of the Pacific Islands. The contributors explore coming-of-age in the tradition of Margaret Mead: the biological basis of teenage rebellion, the role of the adolescent in Pacific Island cultures, and teenagers' influence as agents of change.Insights into local views of the life cycle and adolescents illustrate the dramatic influence of culture on teenagers. The contributors start with the basic tenet that adolescence is a unique phase in the life span because of its simultaneous changes in physical maturation, psychological adjustment, and social relations: the approach demands that adolescence be viewed in the light of broad historical processes.The essays examine how biology, culture, and adolescence intersect, and how social change affects the adolescent experience. They address the rise of intersex interaction in traditionally segregated communities, the problems of cross-generational differences in education for maintaining traditional authority structures, and the structural effects of personal choice in contracting marriages.The book is necessary reading for all those who wish to understand the adolescent in cultural and historical perspective. It is ideal for anthropology courses dealing with social change: courses in medical or biological anthropology; psychology and anthropology, courses focusing on development and the life cycle, and any course addressing the nature versus nurture question.