CHD3243 Exam 1 Study Guide Chapter 1 The Social Context of Adolescence Social Construction a category that is formed based on the norms and practices of a particular society ex adolescence o Different meanings across cultures Navajo rite of passage Kinaalda no concept of adolescence seen as child go through rite of passage and become woman Hamar Bull Jump rite of passage for young men can get married afterwards Markers of adolescence in America puberty first job entering middle high school learning to drive o Not biologically based o Social significance Adolescence is the period of growth between childhood and adulthood Begins when a child starts to physically mature puberty The transition from one stage to the other is gradual and uncertain o Most adults think of adolescence as ending with a combination of attaining financial independence emotional independence and a change in focus onto issues more related to adulthood o Early adolescence refers to ages 11 14 o Middle adolescence refers to ages 15 17 o Late adolescence refers to those 18 with recognition that some 19 19 and 20 year old are truly adults Puberty means to be physically capable of procreating usually between ages 11 13 lower bound o Upper bound physical maturity legal status as an adult attainment of financial and emotional independence Teenager someone in the teen years 13 19 aka teen adolescent youths Juvenile used in the legal sense to signify one who is not yet considered an adult in the eyes of the law anyone up to age 18 Emerging adulthood the stage of life between adolescence and young adulthood late 20s Approaches to Studying Adolescents Eclectic approach interdisciplinary emphasizing not one aspect of adolescent development but all of them recognizing that no single discipline has a monopoly on the truth o Contributions of biologists psychologists educators sociologists economists etc are all important Biological approach focuses on the process of sexual maturation and physical growth that takes place during puberty o Involves the maturation and functions of the male and female organs development of secondary sexual characteristics neurological development and growth trends Cognitive approach deals with both the qualitative changes think and reason and quantitative changes attention memory and intelligence that take place o Also concerned with the effect that these cognitive changes have on the adolescent s personality and behavior Psychosexual approach deals with the development of emotions and of the self including the development of self concept gender role and identity o Also concerned with mental health and the effects of stress on the adolescent The fifth way to view adolescents is to examine them in the context of their social relationships the way that teenagers interact with members of their families The Changing Face of American Adolescence The number of americans aged 14 24 has been slowly by steadily increasing since the 1980s o 25 increase in the juvenile population between 2000 and 2050 Cohort a group of individuals who are born at approximately the same time and who share traits because they experienced the same historical events o The Lost Generation adolescents during or just after WWI Traumatized by the large number of casualties o The G I Generation children during the Great Depression and adolescents during WWII Enormous amount drafted enlisted into the armed services o The Silent Generation born b w 1925 1940 Characterized as conservative and traditionalist ex MLK John Lennon Jerry Garcia o The Baby Boomers born after WWII children of the G I Generation o Generation X born from mid 1960s 1980 Children of baby boomers characterized by cynicism and alienation o Generation Y aka the Millennial Generation born from 1980 2000 o Generation members of the most recent living generation born after 2000 Not adolescents yet Evolving Communication and Information Technologies Adolescents today live in a society undergoing rapid technological changes o The internet more than 1 5 billion users Invented by the US military Pros information resource form of contact shopping etc Cons availability of inappropriate materials to children and adolescents violent and destructive materials encouragement of drug use self mutilation or eating disorders anonymous connumication o Cell phones allow contact even when physically separated friends family means of security Evolving World of Work and Consumption Work o Increases in the number of workers who hold two jobs as well as increases in the amount of overtime put in by workers with single jobs o Internet has lengthened the workday people take their jobs home Cuts down on amount and quality of time spent with families and children o Increase in the number of women even women with young children who are working outside the home Higher demand for child care Less likely to be home to supervise monitor o Increase in the number of students working Conflicts with schoolwork and responsibilities Consumption o Todays youth constitute a huge consumers market growing o Adolescent buying power growing at an enormous rate Evolving Educational Imperatives Expanding technology and social complexity have increased the need for higher education and thus lengthened the period of adolescent dependency o Increased need for education lengthened period of dependency on parents Amount of US students educated has been increasing the of students of all races who have completed 4 years or more of college has tripled since 1960 o Problem costs Educators embracing technologies Increasing awareness of the need for career preparation while in high school The Evolving Family The number of children per family has decreased currently 1 8 from 2 5 The marriage rate has declines and the age at which people marry has gone o Those who do wait until their mid to late twenties to marry have a greater chance of marital success than those who wed earlier More then 1 3 of the men and of the women in the U S have not married up by age 30 o Reasons for trend to delay marriage increase in permissiveness toward premarital sex more need and opportunities for higher education decreased negative attitudes toward singlehood increase in nonmarital cohabitation Divorce rate has been declining slightly since 1980 but US still has one of the highest divorce rates in the world Changes in Family Dynamics More teens will have been raised by single mothers The number of children per family has decreased o
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