Puberty + Interpersonal Relationships + Adjustment

Welcome to the AIR lab!

We study girls as they pass through important life transitions that have the potential for significantly affecting their social and emotional development. The transitions we examine include the major biological changes of puberty and the social transition into new types of interpersonal relationships. Our research is based on theoretical models that consider the inherent interaction between developing individuals, and their environment, with a focus on how different aspects of puberty — its timing and tempo, its impact on identity development, and the ways that adults and peers perceive and understand it — are related to psychological health and well-being.

Select Publications

  • Carter, R., Blazek, J. L & Kwelese, C. (2019). Perceived pubertal timing relative to peers: Comparison targets and context. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology
  • Blazek, J. L. & Carter, R. (2019). Understanding disturbed eating in Black adolescents: Effects of gender identity, racial identity and perceived puberty. Psychology of Men & Masculinities, 20(2), 252.
  • Carter, R., Seaton, E., & Rivas-Drake, D. (2017). Racial identity in the context of pubertal development: Implications for adjustment. Developmental Psychology, 53, 2170 – doi: 10.1037/dev0000413
  • Butler-Barnes, S. T., Leath, S., Williams, A., Byrd, C. M., Carter, R., & Chavous, T. M. (2017). Promoting resilience among African American girls: Racial Identity as a protective factor. Child Development. doi:10.1111/cdev.12995.
  • Carter, R., Mustafaa, F., Leath, S., & Butler-Barnes, S. T. (2018). Teachers’ academic and behavioral expectations and girls’ pubertal development: Does the classroom learning environment matter? Social Psychology of Education, 1-28. doi: 1007/s11218-018-9450-1
  • Seaton, E., & Carter, R. (2018). Pubertal timing, racial identity, neighborhood and school context among Black adolescent females. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 24, 40 – doi: 10.1037/cdp0000162
  • Carter, R., Halawah, A., & Trinh, S. L. (2018). Peer exclusion during the pubertal transition: The role of social competence. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 47, 121 – doi: 10.1007/s10964-017-0682-8