The Cultural Matrix seeks to unravel a uniquely American paradox: the socioeconomic crisis, segregation, and social isolation of disadvantaged black youth, on the one hand, and their extraordinary integration and prominence in popular culture on the other. Despite school dropout rates over 40 percent, a third spending time in prison, chronic unemployment, and endemic violence, black youth are among the most vibrant creators of popular culture in the world. They also espouse severa...

The papers in this volume bring together a cross-disciplinary mix of researchers--developmental psychologists, evolutionary biologists, economists, anthropologists, and sociologists--working on the common theme of investments in children. The interdisciplinary conceptual framework adopted by this collection of papers is loosely built around the idea that there are two broad dimensions of parental investments. These include resources (e.g., income, wealth) on the one hand, and behaviors (e....