Table of Contents

Preface

Part I: Toward an Integrated Model of Human Development
1. The Developmental Dilemma
2. The Reciprocating Self: A Trinitarian Analogy of Being and Becoming
3. Reciprocating Relationships
4. The Reciprocating Self and Developmental Theory
5. The Reciprocating Self and the Relation Development Systems Paradigm: Seeking A Common Ground Based on Relationality

Part II: Lifespan Stages
6. Infancy: The Emergence of the Reciprocating Self
7. Childhood: The Reciprocating Self Goes to School
8. Adolescence: More Reciprocity Than You Think
9. Emerging Adulthood and Young Adulthood: The Solidifying of the Reciprocating Self
10. Middle Adulthood: The Generativity of the Reciprocating Self
11. Late Adulthood: The Senescing of the Reciprocating Self

Part III: Building the Scaffold: Applications for Ministry
12. Special Issues in Human Development: Morality
13. Reciprocating Spirituality
14. Turning Steeples into Scaffolds: The Reciprocating Religious Community
Bibliography
Name Index
Subject Index
About the Authors
About the Artist

About the Author

Jack O. Balswick (PhD, University of Iowa) is senior professor of sociology and family development at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California. He is author or coauthor of seventeen books, including The Gift of Gender, Social Problems: A Christian Understanding, Response, Relationship-Empowerment Parenting, Authentic Human Sexuality, The Reciprocating Self: Human Development in Theological Perspective and A Model for Marriage: Covenant, Grace, Empowerment and Intimacy.

Pamela Ebstyne King (PhD, Fuller Theological Seminary) is associate professor of marital and family studies and the Peter L. Benson Chair of Applied Developmental Science in the School of Psychology at Fuller Theological Seminary. She is ordained in the Presbyterian Church (USA).

Kevin S. Reimer (PhD, Fuller School of Psychology) is a program administrator and faculty member in the School of Education, University of California, Irvine.

Reviews

"The Reciprocating Self by Balswick, King, and Reimer easily gets my vote as the best book integrating human development and theology. I have been teaching human development for nearly twenty years, and it's rare to find a volume on the lifespan that synthesizes multiple theoretical frameworks and a healthy consideration of diversity and social contexts. Moreover, the motif of the reciprocating self serves to illuminate crucial dimensions of moral, spiritual, and relational development. They have grounded this work in sound research while also offering ample practical applications. This second edition offers integrative engagement with the latest developments in psychology and neuroscience and will inform much of my own teaching and research in the years ahead."
*Steven J. Sandage, Albert and Jessie Danielsen Professor of Psychology of Religion and Theology, professor of psychological and brain sciences, director, the Danielsen Research Center, senior staff psychologist, Danielsen Institute, Boston University*

"I was a big fan of The Reciprocating Self. It is a rare book that delivers a scientific vision of human development through the logic of the spirit, working hard to show the reader how the depth of the human developmental experience is spiritual. So you can imagine this fanboy's glee with the release of this updated second edition! If you missed it the first time, you're in for a treat. This book will broaden your vision and deepen your understanding. I think it is a must for every pastor, youth worker, and children's minister. And if you read the first edition—say, in a seminary class—now is the time to reread it. This updated version promises you and your ministry new insights."
*Andrew Root, Luther Seminary, author of Bonhoeffer as Youth Worker*

"Every human life originates in a relationship with another person, and humans thrive when their lives involve mutually beneficial, positive relationships with family, friends and community members. The Reciprocating Self creatively integrates developmental science and the wisdom of Christian theology to provide innovative and singularly significant insights about the nature and importance of human relationships in creating human lives marked by meaning, love and fulfillment. Professors Balswick, King and Reimer have written a book that exemplifies the powerful contributions that can be made to understanding and enhancing human development through bridging the best of social and behavioral science and theological verities in a manner that both informs and inspires."
*Richard M. Lerner, Bergstrom Chair in Applied Developmental Science, Tufts University*

"In the Confucian Analects, when asked, 'Is there one word which may serve as a rule of practice for all one's life?', the Master replies, 'Is not reciprocity such a word?' In The Reciprocating Self, Jack Balswick, Pamela Ebstyne King and Kevin Reimer have given us a magisterial account of reciprocity in human development. The book reflects the best current thinking in theology and developmental science, a rare and powerful combination. This book should be read by anyone interested in the most promising directions in the study of human development."
*William Damon, professor and director, Stanford University Center on Adolescence, author of The Path to Purpose*

"All empirical and theoretical accounts of human development raise a basic normative question: What counts as maturity or developmental advance? Much contemporary social science tries to sidestep the question; this book does not. It is unique in spelling out the implications of a Christian conception of full human development for the process and nature of development at each stage in the lifespan. Even those who don't share these authors' religious convictions can benefit from seeing what it takes to stake out a particular developmental teleology and see it through. And for those who are seeking a specifically Christian perspective on development, this is a must-read!"
*Anne Colby, consulting professor, Stanford Graduate School of Education, coauthor of The Power of Ideals and Some Do Care: Contemporary Lives of Moral Commitment*