The Adolescent Year

The Adolescent Year

1. THE ADOLESCENT YEAR   The studies of changing behavior, attitudes and values throughout adolescent have revealed not only this changes result it has become a widespread practice to divide into two divisions the early and advance adolescent. When adolescents become senior at school, their parents usually recognize them.  

2. Their status in school likewise makes them conscious of the responsibilities they have ever before been expected to assume as they take their place as a senior. Both at home and in school motivates most adolescent to behave in a more mature manner. They seem more immature for their age as they accorded a more mature status in the home and school.   Early adolescent extends roughly from thirteen to sixteen and late adolescent cover the period from them until eighteen the age of legal maturity. Early adolescent is usually referred to the teens. The label teenager, which become popularly associated with the characteristicspateern of behavior of young adolescent. Instead they are usually referred to young men and young women.  

3. CHARACTERISTICS OF ADOLESCENCE Adolescence is an important period than others because of immediate effects on attitudes and behavior whereas other is significant because of their long-term effects. Some period is important for their physical and some for their psychological effects adolescent is important for both. During the fetal life and the first year or two after birth development but the subject himself was not the fascinated. Especially during the adolescent period.   Adolescence is a transitional period of development to another that has happen before will leave its mark on what happen now and in the future. However it is important to realize that what happened earlier has left its mark and will influence this new pattern of behavior and attitudes. The physical changes that take place during the early years of adolescent affect the individual behavioral level and lead reevaluations and shifting adjustment of values.  

4. Adolescence is a period of change during the early when physical changes are rapid changes in attitude and behavior. As physical change slow down so do attitudinal and behavioral changes. They have strong feeling on instability, which are often intensified by the ambiguous treatment they receive from parent and teachers. To young adolescent these may seem more numerous and less easily solved than any they have had to face before. Most adolescent no longer think that a large number of friends is a more important indication of popularity than friends of the type that are admired and respected by their peers. While they want and demand independence they often dread and responsibilities that go with independence and question their ability to cope with these responsibility.   Adolescence is a problem age, many adolescent are inexperienced in coping with problem alone because adolescent want to feel that they are independent they demand the right of coping with their own problem. There inability to cope with problem alone as well as they believe they can many adolescent find that the solution do not always come up to their expectation. A time in life when all his energies are engaged otherwise the major problem created for him by normal sexual growth.  

5. Adolescence is a time of search for identity as was pointed out earlier, in dress, speech and behavior older children want to be as nearly like their gang mates as possible, any deviation from the group standard is likely a threat to group belonging. They hope in this way to attract attention to themselves and to be recognizes as individuals, the importance of status symbols in adolescence.   Adolescence is a dreaded age acceptance of the cultural stereotype of teenager as sloppy, unreliable individuals who are inclined toward destructiveness and antisocial behavior has led many adults who must guide and supervise the young adolescence to dread this responsibility and to be unsympathetic in their attitudes towards, and treatment of normal adolescence behavior. The acceptance of this stereotype and the belief that adults have poor opinion of them make the transition into adulthood difficulty.   Adolescence is a time of unrealism they see themselves and other as they would like them to be rather than as they are. As a result they suffer less from disappointment and disillusionment than they did when they were younger. Feeling that this period of their lives is happier than what they will face in adulthood with its demand and responsibilities there is a tendency to glamorize adolescence and to feel that a happy, carefree age has been lost forever.

6. DEVELOPMENTAL TASKS OF ADOLESCENCE   The development of adolescence require a major change in the childs habitual attitudesand pattern of bahavior.this is specially true of late matures the necessity for mastering the developmental task in the relatively short time that American adolescence have as a result of lowering the age of legal maturity. Because of the antagonism toward members of the opposite sex that often develops during late childhood and puberty, learning new relationship with member of opposite sex actually means starting from scratch to discover what they are like and how to get along with them. Many adolescence who want to be independent want and need the security that emotional depends on their parents or some other adults gives. Most adolescence want want to be accepted by their peers but they often gain this acceptance at the expense of behavior that adults consider socially irresponsible. While the gradual relaxing of social taboos on sexual behavior has gone along way toward preparing adolescence of today for the sexual aspect of marriage. This lack of preparation is responsible for one of the major pieces of unfinished business, which the adolescence carries into adulthood.  

7. Concern about the physical change Few adolescents experience body- cahesis or satisfaction with their bodies some of the concern adolescence have about their bodies are carry over of concern they experience during puberty and which, in the early years of adolescence are based on condition that still prevail. Similarly concern about sex appropriateness opportunity to see if their bodies conform to the cultural standard of sex appropriateness. Acne and other skin eruption are source of concern to both boys and girls they realized that acne mars their chances for physical attractiveness and because they cannot use cosmetic to it up as girl can. The tendency toward obesity that plagues most pubescent boys and girls continue to be a source of concern during the early adolescence years. The reason for the concern from realization of the role attractiveness plays in social relationship. They are also aware of the important role attractiveness plays in choice of leadership. Few adolescence escape being looks conscious to be point where they spent proportional more time and thought on how to improve their looks.

8. Emotional during adolescence Adolescence has been thought so a period of storm and stress. Its is necessary to look for other emotional tension so characteristic of this age. Adolescence emotionally can be attributed mainly to the facts that boys and girls come under social pressure and face new conditions for they receive. While adolescence emotion are often intense, uncontrolled and seemingly irrational there is generally an improvement in emotional behavior with each passing year.

9. Emotional maturity the other important indication of emotional maturity is that the individual assesses a situation critically before responding to it emotionally instead reacting to it. Their willingness to disclose their attitudes, feeling and personal problem is influence partly by how secure how they feel in their social relationship. This they can do by strenuous physical exercise in play or work by laughing or by crying  

10. SOCIAL CHANGES DURING ADOLESCENCE Changes in social behavior , adolescence make the radical shift from disliking members of the opposites sex to preferring their companionship to that of members of their own sex. They are now able to judge members of the opposite sex as well as members of their own sex better than they could when they were younger they are more likely to ignore those they find uncongenial than to teat them in a way that expresses their feeling of superiority as older children.   New social grouping, the social grouping of boys, as a rule are larger and most loosely knit while those of girls are smaller and more sharply defined. At work they are in contact with people of all ages most of whom have friends and family of their own outside their jobs. They may fine themselves limited to few friends connected with their works and out touch with any group large enough to form crowd.  

11. New values in selection of new friends, adolescence want as a friend those whose interest and values are similar to their, who understand them and make them feel secure. To most young adolescence popularity means having a large numbers of friends as they grow older the king of friend they have become more important than the number. They insist upon the right to select them without adult interference. This often leads to two consequences that interfere with the stability of adolescence friendship.   New values in social acceptance, these values are based largely on peer-group values, which are used to judge members of the group. No one trait or characteristic pattern of behavior will guarantee social acceptance during adolescence.   New values in selection of leaders, the leader of one group will not necessarily have the ability to be the leader of an other. Leadership is now a function of the situation as it is adult life. While a good physique in and of self does not make leader it gives them prestige and at the same time contributes favorably to their self-concepts. The characteristic leader will also be slightly above average in intelligence, academic achievement, and level of maturity.

12. SOME ADOLESCENTS INTEREST Recreational interest, there is a carry over of some of the play activities of the early years and the introduction of new and more mature forms of recreation. Because of the pressure of the school work, home duties most adolescence have far less time for recreation than they did when they were younger.   Educational interest, the attitudes of older adolescence toward education zero greatly influence by their vocational interest. If they are aspiring to occupation which require education beyond high school. They will be interested in the courses they feel will be useful to them in their chosen field. Many factor influence the younger as well as the older adolescence attitude toward education. Adolescence who have little interest in education usually show their lack of interest in the following the ways. They become underachiever, working below their capacity in all subject or in the subject they lack in interest. This is especially true of early matures who find school not only uninteresting but often a humiliating experience.   Religious interest, they talk about religion, take courses in it in school and college. Many boys and girls begin to question the religious concept and beliefs of their childhood and this has led adolescence to be called the period of religious doubt. The changes in religious interest during adolescence are even more radical than the changes in vocational interest.

13. CHANGES IN MORALITY DURING ADOLESCENCE Changes in moral concepts, the first are lack of guidance in learning in how to generalized specific concept. Only in the new areas of behavior, such as relationship with members of opposite sex, do adult feels that there is any real need for further moral training. Because parents and teachers assume that adolescence know what is right. Their major emphasis in discipline is on punishment for what they regard as intentional misbehavior.   Building a moral code, they now want to build their own moral codes on the basis of concept of right and wrong which they have changed and modified to meet their more mature level of development and which they have supplemented with laws and rules learned from parents and teacher. Building of moral code is difficult for adolescence because of inconsistencies in standard of right and wrong they encounter in daily life. As interest in members of the opposites sex increases adolescence discover that certain pattern of behavior are not only approved but also even applauded for boys while older children may condemn lying on moral grounds.

14. Inner control of behavior, it was formerly believed that fear either punishment or of social disapproval was the best deterrent to wrong doing, today it is recognized that outer controlled sources of motivation are effective only when there is a possibility that others will find out about the misbehavior and punish those responsible for it. There is also evidence that fears of being shamed loses of effectiveness as a deterrent to misbehavior when there is a little likelihood that others will know of the misbehavior. When children or adolescence learn to associate pleasant emotion with group-approved behavior, and unpleasant emotions under such condition individuals feels guilty when they realized that there behavior is falling below social expectation. Behavior that is controlled by guilt is thus inner-controlled while that controlled by shame is outer controlled.  

15. SEX INTEREST AND SEX BEHAVIOR DURING ADOLESCENCE   The motivation to do so comes partly from social pressure but mainly from adolescence interest and curiosity about sex. Few adolescence that can learn all they want to know about sex from their parents they take advantage of whatever sources of information are available to them sex hygiene courses in school or colleges. Studies of what adolescence are primarily interested in knowing about sex have revealed that girls are specially curios about birth control, boys on the other hand want to know about venereal diseases, enjoyment of sex, sexual intercourse and birth control.

16. Development of heterosexuality, this is far from easy for both boys and girls, after the years during the late childhood when members of the two sexes had their own gangs and interest and during puberty when both boys and girls are developed attitudes of resentment against members of the opposites sex. The new interest which begin to develop when sexual maturation is complete, is romantic in nature and is accompanied by strong desire to win the approval of members of the opposites sex.new social attitudes toward sex, the ready availability of contraceptive devices and the legalization of abortion in many state have brought about radical changes in sexual behavior during adolescence and in attitudes towards sex and sexual behavior. For the most part adolescence now follow a pattern in their heterosexual behavior similar to the traditional pattern, though they past from one stage of the pattern another far from quickly than in the past. Dating start earlier today than in the past generation and quickly develop into a going steady relationship. Many young adolescence prefer going steady to playing the field because it gives them the feeling of security to know that they have an available partner for all social activities. There are many reasons for this new pattern of sexual behavior. Among these are the beliefs that it is the thing to do because everyone else does it; that girls and boys who are still virgin by the time they reach senior year in high school are different and to adolescence these means inferior.

17. APPROVED SEX ROLES DURING ADOLESCENCE   This is even more difficult for much adolescence, especially for girls than mastering the first development task relating to sexual learning to get along with age mate of the opposites sex. Girls by contrast, often reach adolescence with blurred concepts of the female role though their concepts of the male role are clearer and better defined. Sex education courses in junior and senior high school are important in fostering concept of the traditional role of males and females. If adolescence girls rebel against the traditional female role not only the members of the opposites sex but also by other girls may reject them. Because the women liberation movement has concentrated achieving equality for women in the business and professional fields and in marriage. Older adolescence girls no longer meekly accept or pretend to accept the traditional female sex role.

18. In addition boys try to show their masculine superiority by achievement superior to those of girls whether in academic works, in games and in sports or in greater autonomy in their lives. Unlike boys in the gang age of late childhood who devalue female achievement mainly by criticizing or ridiculing them or by boasting of the superiority of their own achievement, adolescence boys are subtler in their techniques. Sex bias is rarely an expression of the effects of female sex role typing. Consequently they pretend that their achievement is inferior to those of boys, often to the point where they actually believe it. Awareness of the values boys have for dating partners and for future mates motivates some girls to underachieve in any activities in which both boys and girls are involved. According the traditional stereotype, males are achievers and superior to females in any activity in which members of the two sexes are involved. As is true of underachievement, fear and success is not eh characteristic of boys.  

19. FAMILY RELATIONSHIP DURING ADOLESCENCE Parents far to often refuse to modify their concepts of their children abilities, as they grow older. Even more important is the social called generation gap between the adolescence and their parents. Parents cannot be blamed for all the friction that develops between them and their adolescence children. Their inability or unwillingness to communicate with their parents helps to widen the gap between them. Equally important much adolescence feels that their parent does not understand them and that there standard of behavior are old fashioned. Although the sources of friction between adolescence and members of their families are myriad. Improvement in parents-adolescence relationship when parents begin to realized that their son and daughter are no longer children. They can understand the behavior of younger children better than they could earlier and their newly acquired poised and self confidence make them less easily embarrassed or upset by their behavior. Older adolescence even accepts grand parents and other relatives more graciously than they did several years earlier. The friendly relationship of same sex sibling during childhood often deteriorates in adolescence.

20. HAZARD OF ADOLESCENCE Mortality as a result of illness is far less common during adolescence than in earlier years. Suicide or attempts are becoming increasingly common among today adolescence. Physical defects that can be corrected such as crooked teeth and poor eyesight. Physical defect, which prevent the adolescence from doing what peers, do. The major psychological hazards of adolescence center around the failure to make the psychological transition to maturity that constitutes the important developmental task. In the area of social behavior peers group shows immaturity in childish pattern of social grouping and social activities with peers of the same sex and in the lack of acceptance. Immaturity is especially apparent.  

21. HAPPINESS IN ADOLESCENCE Adolescence who are poorly adjusted especially to those who have been making poor adjustment since childhood tend to be the most unhappy and the most persistently unhappy throughout the years of early adolescence. Although all adolescence tend to be unrealistic during the early year of adolescence. The grater happiness that is characteristic of late adolescence is due, in the part to the fact that older adolescence are granted a status more in keeping with their level of development than was true during early adolescence. If adolescence are realistic about the degree of acceptance they can achieve and are satisfied with the people who are accept them and show affection for them. Because most adolescence become more realistic as adolescence progresses it is that they tend to be happier and better satisfied with their lives than they were during the unrealistic period of early adolescence.