All teens are individuals, produced in special circumstances and nurtured by unique family environments. As a result, there is nothing typical about the behavior of teenagers. Every teenager will react to situations differently, according to his temperament and upbringing. But most teenagers tend to display certain biological and developmental markers during these crucial years. You can use these markers as guides, but most teenagers need to be handled without the use of sweeping generalities.
Biological Changes
Teenagers go through puberty, a time when their hormones are in flux, and their sexual development suddenly surges, according to the Dana Foundation. Because of these hormonal shifts, teenagers can experience widely swinging mood changes. Some teens can become cranky or aggressive. Teens can experience sudden feelings of euphoria and may have impaired judgment. Teens are also going through the last spurts of physical growth, which can make them tired. Sleeping late on weekends and being out of sorts are all teenage behaviors.
Social Pressures
Teens live in their own complex social microcosm that adults may have little knowledge of. At this age, teens have a social structure that they are trying to fit into, and yet they want to achieve distinction, according to the Dana Foundation. Peer pressure can produce enormous stress in a teen, with either positive or negative results. Teens make seemingly inexplicable choices at this time as they try to sort out their place in the tribe.
Pressure to Differentiate
At a certain age, sometimes as early as 2 years, children begin to develop their sense of self. By the time they are teens, they are on a quest to differentiate themselves as much as possible from their parents or other adults in their lives. This is a natural urge in most teens, to proclaim, "I don't want to be anything like my parents" and then to set out to prove they are not. This process of differentiation often results in rebelliousness and an attitude of generational arrogance.
Idealism
Because teens are young and naive, they often develop idealistic views of life. Teens have less experience and don't know that nothing is perfect in our world. They are often unaware of all the things that could and will go wrong with a plan. As a result, teens can become frustrated with adults and their apparent mismanagement of the world. Teens can also exercise poor planning and a poor grasp of consequences for their actions.
Sense of Entitlement
In the post-modern period, teens have typically begun to display a sense of entitlement, according to the Aspen Education Group, that their parents can't understand. Teens born in the 1990s, for example, were born into a world of personal computers, cable television, compact disc players and other technological advances. Many parents have showered their children with these wonderful toys and gifts. As a result, today's teens now feel entitled to all these devices and other privileges as a matter of course and not because of hard work or sacrifice. The teen may seem spoiled in comparison to older generations.
Sense of Adventure
Teens typically display a sense of adventure that is a hallmark of youth. Their idealism and fearlessness combine with sometimes unshakable self-confidence to form an individual who wants to climb Mount Everest or sail around the world, which can meet with success or failure.
References
- The Dana Foundation: Beyond Raging Hormones: The Tinderbox in the Teenage Brain
- The Aspen Education Group: Narcissistic and Entitled to Everything! Does Gen Y Have Too Much Self-Esteem?
- "Get Out of My Life, but First Could You Drive Me & Cheryl to the Mall: A Parent's Guide to the New Teenager, Revised and Updated"; Anthony E. Wolf Ph.D. and Anthony E. Wolf; 2002
- "Teenagers: A Natural History"; David Bainbridge and Gordon Neufeld; 2009
- "7 Things Your Teenager Won't Tell You: And How to Talk About Them Anyway"; Jenifer Lippincott and Robin M. Deutsch; 2005
