The format of this monograph is three essays, which we arrived at after spending a year writing over one hundred pages of what we even tually realized was a tedious reworking of old material. So we started over determined to write something new. At first we thought this approach might not work as a coherent mono graph, which is why we chose the essay format rather than chapters. As it turns out, there is a common thread—namely the directional distance function, which also gave us our title. As you shall see, the directional distance function includes traditional distance functions and efficiency measures as special cases providing a unifying framework for existing productivity and efficiency measures. It is also flexible enough to open up new areas in productivity and efficiency analysis such as environmen tal and aggregation issues. That we did not see this earlier is humbling; a student at a recent conference raised his hand and asked 'Why didn't you start with the directional distance function in the first place? In deed. This manuscript is intended to make up for our earlier oversights. This monograph contains papers coauthored with Wen-Fu Lee and Osman Zaim and one paper written by two former students, Hiroyuki Fukuyama and Bill Weber. We thank them for their contributions. An other former student, Jim Logan (Logi) read and critiqued the manu script for which we are grateful.

Take an in depth look at the field of child and adolescent development. In this issue, the new leadership of this series offers different aspects of relevant work throughout multiple disciplines and continents, capturing both the variability and the richness of the themes considered and topics investigated in the field of childhood and adolescence. It answers: What are some of the “new” directions in the developmental sciences of childhood and adolescence? Where will the field be within the next decade or so? How do those who practice in the field’s different corners see its trajectory? This is the 147th volume in this Jossey-Bass series New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development. Its mission is to provide scientific and scholarly presentations on cutting edge issues and concepts in this subject area. Each volume focuses on a specific new direction or research topic and is edited by experts from that field.

The field of coaching adult populations has grown dramatically over the past two decades. This volume brings together coaching scholars and experts to review this trend, examine some of the theoretical foundations of the field, and explore how coaching adults manifests itself in the workplace, at executive levels, and in educational and nonprofit organizations. Readers will: Gain understanding of this field of coaching adult audiences, Learn how adult development and adult learning theories undergird this work, and See applications of coaching approaches through numerous case studies. This is the 148th volume of the Jossey Bass series New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education. Noted for its depth of coverage, it explores issues of common interest to instructors, administrators, counselors, and policymakers in a broad range of education settings, such as colleges and universities, extension programs, businesses, libraries, and museums. This is the 148th volume of the Jossey Bass series New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education. Noted for its depth of coverage, it explores issues of common interest to instructors, administrators, counselors, and policymakers in a broad range of education settings, such as colleges and universities, extension programs, businesses, libraries, and museums.

Student affairs has changed greatly in the almost twenty years that the series editors have been managing New Directions for Student Services. This volume provides a look back at this period of time from 1997 through 2014 with topical chapters focused on: trends in student affairs during the past two decades, changes in students and the most effective student affairs responses, progress and recommendations for assessment in student affairs, and challenges with and skills needed for digital technologies, finance and budgets, and staff preparation. The volume concludes with a look into the future of student affairs practice based in part on the lessons learned from looking at the recent past. This is the 151st volume of this Jossey-Bass higher education quarterly series. An indispensable resource for vice presidents of student affairs, deans of students, student counselors, and other student services professionals, New Directions for Student Services offers guidelines and programs for aiding students in their total development: emotional, social, physical, and intellectual.