Both the positive and the negative circumstances that confront children and young people living in cities are examined in this volume, which identifies the best researched-based solutions for improving these circumstances. The contributors explore topics such as: factors that have influenced inner-city life - migration patterns and middle-class flights from cities and ghettos; the role of coping, resources and skills in an urban family's successful management of stress; community-university partnerships that offer workable solutions to urban children and their families; and the features of homes, schools and communities that promote academic success and healthy psychological development in adverse circumstances. They also discuss: barriers to urban schooling - underfunding, dangerous environments and teacher overload - and promising avenues of reform for effective schools; strategies for preventing violence and substance abuse among city youth; the use of cultural competency training for health-care providers to overcome geographic, language and ethnic barriers; and the development and implementation of collaborative programmes across disciplines to serve city children and their families better.