...TEEN TALK A Survival Guide for Parents of Teenagers WHAT'S NORMAL FOR TEEN DEVELOPMENT? Colleen Gengler, Extension Educator, Family Relations, University of Minnesota Extension What's teen development all about? Parents often blame the ups and downs of raising a teen on one or two things such as changes in hormones or the influence of peer pressure. The preteen and teen years are filled with many changes. Teens have many developmental tasks to accomplish, far more than those of infancy and early childhood. Normal teen development is made up of not only biological and physical changes, but also social, emotional, and intellectual changes. A teen is experiencing many changes in: Their friendships and relationships. How their brain functions. How they think. How they exist in the larger society. • • • • Teens are also figuring out who they are or in other words, their identity. Part of this process is working to become more independent while still maintaining ties with parents and family. Accomplishment of these developmental tasks happens gradually, sometimes independently and sometimes together with another task, and in no set order. Each teen matures on his or her own timetable. Teens can be ahead of the typical age in one area of development and at the same time, behind the average age in another area. For example, consider the awkward 15 year old boy who has not gotten used to the extra inches he grew in a few months; this same 15 year old boy might possess wonderful...
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...they often times do not focus on the aging brain, but rather on the aging body. Along with the many stages of life, comes the many stages of the brain. The aging brain is a very intricate process that happens to all. The process of the aging brain has many different stages. The infant, adolescent, and adult stages are a much simpler explanation of each. Development of the brain begins in the back and finishes in the front. Each stage has its own unique characteristics that set them apart from one another. During each stage, the brain goes through changes that affect the outcome of ones later life. That is why taking all the proper precautions to a live a healthy life, is vital in order to having a healthy brain as one’s future...
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...Should juveniles who commit first or second- degree murder receive a mandatory sentence of life without parole? That is a question that many people are asking themselves. This is a very debatable question due to the fact that if a juvenile does change, then he/she wouldn't have a chance at a new life because of the life sentence. I believe they should be granted a second chance, but if they take that second chance for granted, then they should be sentenced to life without parole. On the other hand, there has been cases where a teen who was sentenced to life got a second chance, but decided to take it for granted for being immature and emotionally unstable. Many teens make reckless decisions while growing up, some don't know better but others do. Where I stand in this situation is that juveniles should not be sentenced to mandatory life sentences without parole. Not many...
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...two goes hand in hand. “Addiction is defined as a chronic, relapsing brain disease that is characterized by compulsive drug seeking and use, despite harmful consequences” (National Institute on Drug Abuse, 2014, p.1). Addiction can be several things, two well-known addictions are drinking and doing drug. When addiction starts to change the brain it leads to long terms affects which is usually abuse. Adolescents can and will go a little further with abuse by adding things like pill popping and smoking. “Many adolescents who abuse drugs have a history of physical, emotional, and/or sexual abuse or other trauma” (National Institute on Drug Abuse, 2014, p.2). Abuse begins when adolescents start to do things like steal and lie to friends and family members to get what it is they want. How does abuse or addiction affect the developing brain of an adolescent? Drug abuse can cause serious progressive problems within the adolescent brain.”Memory loss, ability to concentrate, motor skills and coping skills are all affected by drug and alcohol abuse. Adolescents tend to make decisions that are irrational when under influence of drugs and alcohol, they may think they are making the right decisions but they are actually they are doing more harm to themselves then they realized. For adolescents, this can be even more significant as the brain is still developing and changing and any damage to sensitive nerves or brain matter can be permanent” (Alcohol rehab, 2015,p.1). Adolescents when...
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...The teenage brain is the same, if not better than the brain of an adult. Adolescents can have adult conversations, and are mature at an earlier age than many once thought. However, they can act different according to how they were raised, who they hang out with, and how their parents treat them either responsibly or like an elementary scholar. First, the teenage brain makes more mistakes and thinks about their decisions better than adults and children because they have more brain development and more capacity to learn than adults and children. This displays that the teenage brain is the same, if not better than, an adult brain. (In the article Why Teenagers Are So Impulsive, Kristina Caudle states, "On the whole, teenagers made about 15% more errors than...
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...5 19 March 2015 Teen Behaviors in Romeo and Juliet Many teenagers make bad decisions, and act in a way most adult would say is unintelligent. Romeo and Juliet was a story about two feuding families with the same wealth living in Verona. After a big fight Prince Escalus tells them that if there is another fight they will be killed. Later that night Romeo meets Juliet at her father’s party and they both fall in love, after the party Romeo talks with Juliet about getting married and she agrees to have the wedding the very next day. After the wedding the two families get into another fight. Due to the fight Mercutio and Tybalt gets killed. Romeo who was also fighting was sentenced to banishment even though the Prince had said that if there was fighting there will be death. Juliet who was heartbroken drank a potion that makes her seem dead for nearly two days until the Friar could mend Romeo’s problem, but Romeo not knowing the plan thought that Juliet has really died so he kills himself. After Juliet wakes and sees Romeo dead she then kills herself too, as a result the two families end their feud because both blood lines have ended. In this play most of the teens made bad decisions. Teens tend to make bad decision because of the normal growth of their brain, Teenagers often have part in many dangerous actions. The American Academy of Child and Adolescents Psychiatry states that adolescent do dangerous things: “Based on the stage of their brain development, adolescents are more...
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... It is very easy for teens to get ahold of alcohol whether it be from the cabinets in their own homes or from older friends and family members, who would buy it for them. Teenage drinking has become one of the largest social issues today. More than 25,000 lives have been saved because of the MLDA (minimum legal drinking age). When states had lowered drinking ages in the past, the underage drinking problem was worse than ever before in the US. To have a better understanding on the controversy around the legal drinking age, some background information may be helpful. Kids are now experimenting with alcohol at early ages than they have ever before. Teens who are drinking can be affected in many different ways. Alcohol has been linked to a wide range of illnesses such as cancer, high blood pressure and liver disease. Some studies and surveys have shown that between the ages of 12-21, young adults have consumed alcohol at least once. Every year there are about 5,000 deaths in young people as a result in underage drinking. However with the ratings and percentages of teens drinking there are some ways to educate and possibly prevent the negative outcomes. A survey taken in 2004 showed that students “who completed AlcoholEDU were 20% less likely to be heavy-episodic drinkers and 30% less likely to be problematic drinkers” (Teens at Risk 173). These numbers “prove that alcohol education can be a useful tool in altering students drinking habits” (Teens at Risk 173). Having a...
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...Not only is it unconstitutional, but there are also various articles and studies that have proven to show that juveniles who commit crimes at a young age do not have a fully developed brain and do not think the same way an adult normally does. These juveniles who commit crimes can be helped, as well as put into rehabilitation programs. A quality evaluation has proven that programs have been very effective in various cases. Juveniles from the age of thirteen to the age of eighteen are being held accountable for their criminal actions and in a debate if they should be sentenced to mandatory life without parole, but recent brain imaging and studies reveal that an adolescent brain is not fully developed during the teen years. According to scientific research a woman's brain is considered fully developed until the age of twenty-four and a man’s brain at the age of twenty-nine. In an article written in March 14, 2012 by Gail Garinger states that “The regions of the adolescent brain responsible for controlling thoughts,...
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...effects for the individual and or others. Adolescents turn to substance abuse for various reasons. According to Feldman (2013, p.371) many use because they want that free spirit feeling that the loss of inhibitions and tension might provide, others are thrill seeking, and some use them as means to escape from daily stressors. Research states there is a link between adolescent’s substance addiction and changes in brain structure, function, and neurocognition that are characterized by this stage of development (Squeglia, L. M., Jacobus, J., & Tapert, S. F.,2009). Substance Abuse/Addiction on Brain Development From 12 to 18 years of age the use of alcohol and drugs rises tremendously. This rise in substance use correlates with the fact that in 2009 23% of adolescents met the diagnostic criteria for substance use disorder by the age of 20 (Squeglia, L. M., Jacobus, J., & Tapert, S. F.,2009). The usage of alcohol and drugs during the adolescences years could possibly lead to the brain deviating from its normal route of maturation and key processes of brain development (Squeglia, L. M., Jacobus, J., & Tapert, S. F.,2009). There was a study conducted in which adolescents with an alcohol addiction and those who did not have an addition were tested...
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...ADOLESCENCE AND THE AGONY OF DECISION MAKING Adolescence and The Agony of Decision Making A Research on Adolescence and The Agony of Decision Making Mylene C. Malbas Department of Liberal Arts and Sciences Visayas State University Kristine Gil T. Belarmino Instructor ADOLESCENCE AND THE AGONY OF DECISION MAKING Abstract To date, analyses of differences between adolescents and adults have emphasized age differences in cognitive factors presumed to affect decision making. In contrast, this article examines research and theory on three psychosocial aspects of maturity of judgment: responsibility, temperance, and perspective. For several psychosocial dimensions of maturity that are likely to affect judgment, the existing evidence, while indirect and imperfect, indicates that the greatest differences are found in comparisons between early adolescents versus middle and late adolescents. Developmental research on maturity that focuses specifically on mid- and late adolescence, that simultaneously examines both cognitive and non-cognitive factors, and that investigates the relation between these factors and the ability to make good decisions is greatly needed. ADOLESCENCE AND THE AGONY OF DECISION MAKING Adolescence and The Agony of Decision Making A Review of the Literature The treatment of adolescence under the modern legal system often hinges on considerations of young people’s psychological maturity, and on...
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...“Each year, approximately 5,000 young people under the age of 21 die as a result of underage drinking…” (1). This quote shows that underage drinking is a very dangerous thing and many people should start taking that into consideration. The drinking age should not be lowered for various reasons. If the drinking age was to be lowered it could potentially cause more deaths and interfere with the development of minors along with many other consequences. The drinking age has been 21 since 1984 because of an act that said if states didn’t make the drinking age a minimum of 21 years old they would lose 10 percent of highway funds. “The legal drinking age in the United States has been 21 since the National Minimum Drinking Age Act in 1984. When President Ronald . . . Reagan signed the act, he issued a blanket requirement for all states to raise their drinking age, or risk losing highway funding from the government” (7). Reagan did find studies that the 18-20 age group are most likely to be in an accident related to alcohol than any other age group...
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...Adolescent Self-Portrait December 1, 2014 BSHS/325 Maria Perrotta Adolescent Self-Portrait From the time an individual is born, they are facing continual growth and changes. Upon reaching adolescence, an individual will face many changes quickly that affect feelings and personality. Males and females face the same milestones, yet, are affected and changed by them differently. What It Feels Like To Be a Teenager Being a teenager is an exciting, scary, and overall stressful time in one’s life. Many changes occur physically and mentally and one can experience a new range of different emotions. A teen is also influenced by surrounding environmental factors then they used to be. Teenagers dream of doing cool things away from their parents and gaining a whole new level of independence that all begins when they turn about 13. That is actually a naïve view of what becoming a teenager is really all about. When an adolescent enters their teenage years, puberty begins. The body goes through major growth spurts that affects the body and mind. Boys will shoot up in height and develop a deeper-toned voice leaving them to feel like a man. A girl’s body will fill out as they develop breasts, pubic hair, and begin their menstrual cycle. The increase of hormones comes into play and mentally alters a girl's perception and attitude. Also, their voice will change too, but it will not be as dramatic as it is for a young boy. This stage of adolescence is very awkward...
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...Should Teens be charged as adults? For a country where freedom is heavily advertised, the United States sure does love to lock people away in jail, especially teens. Did you know that the U.S sends more kids to die in jail than any other country and the U.S also has the highest incarceration rate in the world? What does our country have against teens and why are teens often punished more harshly than adults? Often in our “free” nation, teens are charged as adults and i personally see that as unfair. There are many reasons why this is unfair and some of those reasons include; Studies on teen brains showing they lose a massive amount of brain tissue during that time in their life, many kids grow up in poverty and there is no other choice and...
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...of first degree murder for beating the 48-pound girl, and sentenced him to life in prison. This punishment was a rather harsh judgment many in the community argue against today. Instead of incarcerating him for life, what other options are available? As teen violence continues to plague the nation, many people wonder if rehabilitation is an effective method for deterring future occurrences. Twelve-year old Lionel Tate took the life of a young girl named Tiffany Eunick. Lionel’s mother, a Florida Highway Patrol officer, was sleeping upstairs though she was responsible for babysitting Tiffany. The mother left the children watching television and playing together downstairs unattended. During horse play, Lionel begins to re-enact moves he saw watching wrestling. The 160-pound boy was responsible for cuts, bruises, fractured skull, lacerated liver, broken ribs and internal hemorrhaging on young Tiffany Eunick. Certainly the parents of the deceased child will want to see justice served for the loss of their loved one. Stories surface daily about a teen committing some sort of crime. A heart wrenching reality that many people will either themselves face, or know someone who has or will experience. The epidemic of teen violence is rapidly increasing; Statistics say youth under the age of 18 were arrested for nearly 1561 homicides in 2000 (Fox, Zawitz 2002). Controversies regarding if the courts should try a juvenile as an adult have become a widely held topic. Many people...
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...Adolescence and Addiction “Adolescence is development stage that lies between childhood and adulthood” (Feldman, 2011, p.317). The adolescent years are known for exploring and trying new things. For countless adolescences drugs and alcohol are the first things that are experimenting with. The most popular drug of choice among adolescences is marijuana. Teens don’t see this drug as a real “drug”. Many believe that marijuana is consisted an acceptable drug, to try because it comes from the earth. Accord to some research it does not have addictive component’s. Adolescence tends to build relationships with drugs based of using for recreational use, peer pressure, and as an escape from everyday life (Feldman, 2011). Marijuana can be consisted a gateway drug; mean that it can lead to the use of more addictive drugs. “Addictive drugs are drugs that produce a biological or psychological dependence in users” (Feldman, 2011, p.372). Addictive drugs cause the body to be unable to function because the body begins to crave for the drug. Being additive to drugs changes your physical appearance and also causes damage to your nervous system (Feldman, 2011). Alcohol is also a popular thing for adolescence to experiment with. Most people would think it would be hard for adolescence to have access to alcohol, however it is not. Adolescences who have parents who drink have easy access to alcohol at all times. Most parents don’t keep track of how much alcohol is kept in their house. Some...
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