Coming of Age in Samoa

work by Mead

Written by

The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last updated

June 17, 2026

Quick Summary

Margaret Mead's Coming of Age in Samoa (1928) is a seminal work in anthropology that explores adolescent development in Samoan culture. Mead, an American anthropologist, studied the nonliterate peoples of Oceania, focusing on how culture shapes behavior.12

In Coming of Age in Samoa, Mead argued for cultural determinism, suggesting that human behavior is shaped by culture rather than biology. Her research indicated that Samoan adolescents experienced a less tumultuous transition to adulthood compared to their American counterparts, attributing this to Samoa's more relaxed social norms regarding sexuality and a less rigid social structure. This perspective faced criticism, with some anthropologists questioning the accuracy of her observations and interpretations. Despite critiques, the book remains a significant contribution to understanding cultural influences on development.12

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

3 Britannica Sources

Ask Britannica AI about this topic

Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.

Margaret Mead
Work and impact
…first of her 23 books, Coming of Age in Samoa (1928), a perennial best seller and a characteristic example of her reliance on qualitative rather than quantitative methods. The book clearly indicates her belief in cultural determinism, the theory that human behavior is determined by culture rather than biology. This…
Read More
…first of her 23 books, Coming of Age in Samoa (1928), a perennial best seller and a characteristic example of her reliance on qualitative rather than quantitative methods. The book clearly indicates her belief in cultural determinism, the theory that human behavior is determined by culture rather than biology. This…
Read More