International Centre for Health & Society, UCL
2004 Seminar Series
You are invited to attend
Monday 6 December 5.00pm (followed by drinks at 6pm)
Professor Ingrid Schoon, City University
Resilience: Adaptations to a changing life?
RSVP attendance essential.
E-mail: [log in to unmask]
Abstract
A crucial factor determining health and well-being in human
development is the way in which individuals interact with the
environment in which they live and work throughout their life cycle.
Although it is well known that individuals living in poorer socio-
economic circumstances are not as healthy as those at the top, and
that children raised in socio-economically disadvantaged families are
at an increased risk of developing adjustment problems later on in
life, there is a significant number of individuals who develop into
healthy and competent adults despite the experience of adversity.
Knowledge about the factors and processes facilitating resilience in
the face of adversity can help to improve the life chances of
individuals at risk by reducing the detrimental impact of risk
factors and enhancing resilience by ensuring that appropriate
protective mechanisms are in place. Furthermore, a focus on health
assets and adaptation aims to maximise wellness even before
maladjustment has occurred. The aim of this paper is to outline a
developmental-contextual systems model of individual adjustment
taking into account the dynamic interactions between a developing
individual and a changing socio-historical context. Research stemming
from the ESRC funded network on human capabilities and resilience
will be used to address key issues related to risk factors,
psychosocial resources, as well as risk and protective processes
operating at different life stages and in different life contexts.
Ingrid Schoon is Professor of Psychology and Director of the Centre
for Human Development and Well-Being at City University, London. Her
research draws on data collected for three British Cohort Studies
examining the origins, continuity, and change in patterns of
individual adjustment across the life course.
The seminar will be introduced by Professor Mel Bartley who will
briefly describe the six component projects in the ESRC Priority
Network: Development and persistence of human capability and
resilience in its social and geographical context
(www.capabilityandresilience.org). Those who think the work of this
Network would be relevance to their own work are encouraged to join
the Network's 'end users list'. Please contact Jane Johnson
([log in to unmask]).
Ms Patricia Crowley
Dept of Epidemiology & Public Health, UCL
1 - 19 Torrington Place, London WC1E 6BT
T: (International code +44 20) or (Domestic code 020) 76791708
F: (International code +44 20) or (Domestic code 020) 7813 0280
New Masters course offered see: www.ucl.ac.uk/healthandsociety
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