Handbook of the Life Course / Handbooks of Sociology and Social Research (PDF)

Michael J. Shanahan is Professor of Sociology and Faculty Fellow at the Carolina Population Center and at the Center for Developmental Science, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is interested in individual differences in the life course, a theme that he has studied with reference to genetics, health, and personality. Recent articles appear in Social Forces, Developmental Psychology, Journal of Health and Social Behavior, and Social Science and Medicine. His current research examines associations between social circumstances and gene transcription both early and later in the life course.

Jeylan T. Mortimer is Professor of Sociology and Founding Director of the Life Course Center, University of Minnesota, and Principal Investigator of the longitudinal, three generation Youth Development Study. Her interests span the areas of work and socioeconomic attainment, the life course, youth and transition to adulthood.  Her recent articles appear in Social Psychology Quarterly, Social Forces, the Journal of Research on Adolescence, the Journal of Marriage and Family, Developmental Psychology, the Journal of Vocational Behavior, Longitudinal and Life Course Studies, and Demography.  Her current research examines intergenerational change and transmission of achievement orientations, the impacts of prior parental experiences and trajectories on their adolescent children, and the sources of resilience in the transition to adulthood.  Professor Mortimer is Chair of the Section on Aging and the Life Course in the American Sociological Association.  She previously served as Chair of the ASA Sections on Children and Youth, and Social Psychology.





Monica Kirkpatrick Johnson is Professor of Sociology and Honors College Distinguished Professor at Washington State University.  Her research interests are in the areas of work, family, and education across the life course, with particular focus on well-being and achievement in adolescence

“Handbook of the Life Course: Volume II could usefully sit on any life course researcher’s desk—not on a shelf, because it is too useful. Each chapter offers rich and new insights into the adventure of life courses and life course research. … graduate students and researchers at all levels could beneficially dip into the book again and again for inspiration and guidance.” (Susan McDaniel, Canadian Studies in Population, Vol. 44 (1-2), 2017)