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 Chapter 6: Adolescence

Module 6.3

Social and Emotional Development in

Adolescence

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
After reading Module 6.3, students will be able to answer the following questions:

Identity: Asking “Who Am I?”

LO10 How does the development of self-concept, self-esteem, and identity proceed during
adolescence?

LO11 What dangers do adolescents face as they deal with the stresses of adolescence?

Relationships: Family and Friends

LO12 How does the quality of relationships with family and peers change during adolescence?

LO13 What are gender and ethnic relations like in adolescence?

LO14 What does it mean to be popular and unpopular in adolescence, and how do adolescents
respond to peer pressure?

Dating, Sexual Behaviour, and Teenage Pregnancy

LO15 What are the functions and characteristics of dating during adolescence?

LO16 How does sexuality develop in the adolescent years?

KEY TERMS AND CONCEPTS

Autonomy Identity diffusion Reference groups
Cliques Identity foreclosure Rejected adolescents
Controversial adolescents Identity-versus-identity-confusion stage Sex cleavage
Crowds Moratorium Socialized delinquents
Generation gap Neglected adolescents Undersocialized
Identity achievement Peer pressure delinquents

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MODULE OUTLINE
I. Identity: Asking “Who Am I?”
A. Self-Concept: What Am I Like?
1. Self-concept broadens during adolescence to include both your own assessment of
who you are and to also include others’ views.
2. The view of oneself becomes more organized and coherent.
3. Adolescents can look at themselves in terms of traits and can see multiple aspects
of themselves (which can be confusing at first).
B. Self-Esteem: How Do I Like Myself?
1. Gender Differences in Self-Esteem
a) Girls have lower self-esteem than boys, especially in early adolescence.
2. Socioeconomic Status and Ethnic Group Differences in Self-Esteem
a) Higher SES leads to more self-esteem (especially in late adolescence when
one can buy things of value).
b) Minority group status also influences self-esteem, but less biased treatment
of minorities has eased its impact.
(1) Traditional research says that prejudice is incorporated into
minority adolescents’ self-concepts.
(2) A stronger sense of cultural identity and community is related to
higher self-esteem in several minority groups.
c) Self-esteem can be influenced not just by ethnic group membership, but
also by a complex combination of factors
(1) Some researchers consider ethnicity and gender simultaneously
(ethgender) when it comes to self-esteem.
C. Identity Formation: Change or Crisis?
1. Erikson’s stage is IDENTITY-VERSUS-IDENTITY-CONFUSION STAGE, where
adolescents seek to determine what is unique and distinctive about themselves.
a) Those who do not find a suitable identity tend to follow a dysfunctional
path because their sense of self is diffuse, failing to organize around a
central, unified core identity.
b) Those who create an appropriate identity learn their unique capabilities
and believe in them and they develop an accurate sense of self.
2. Societal Pressures and Reliance on Friends and Peers
a) There are a lot of social pressures to achieve a secure identity (or at least
have clear career or major goals).
b) Now, adolescents rely more on friends and peers than adults.
c) Erikson suggested that males and females progress through the identity-vs-
identity-confusion stage differently
(1) But it appears as though today, the experiences of boys and girls
seem relatively similar during this stage.
3. Psychological Moratorium
a) Erikson suggests that adolescents have a psychological moratorium to let go
of responsibilities for a while and explore new roles and possibilities.
4. Limitations of Erikson’s Theory
a) To critics, Erikson’s view is based on male-oriented concepts of
individuality and competitiveness.
b) Alternatively, Carol Gilligan suggests that women develop identity while
establishing relationships.

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(1) In this view, the building of caring networks between herself and
others is key to a woman’s identity
D. Marcia’s Approach to Identity Development: Updating Erikson
1. Marcia suggests four categories within which either crisis, a period of identity
development in which an adolescent consciously chooses between various
alternatives and makes decisions; or commitment, a psychological investment in a
course of action or an ideology, occur.
2. The four statuses are:
a) IDENTITY ACHIEVEMENT; adolescents consider and explore various
alternatives without commitment.
b) IDENTITY FORECLOSURE; adolescents here did not do adequate personal
exploration but made a commitment (usually following others’ directives).
c) IDENTITY DIFFUSION; adolescents explore various options but never
commit to one.
d) MORATORIUM; adolescents explore and do not commit to an option and
that creates anxiety and conflict; an identity is usually defined later, after a
struggle.
3. Some adolescents shift among the four categories, for example, moving between
moratorium and identity achievement.
4. Although adolescents are not stuck in one category, research indicates that identity
gels in the late teens and early 20s.
E. Identity and Ethnicity
1. Forming an identity is often difficult for adolescents, but particularly for those who
are members of ethnic groups that face discrimination.
a) Cultural assimilation model holds that individual cultural identities should
be assimilated into a unified culture—the melting-pot model.
b) The pluralistic society model suggests that society is made up of diverse,
coequal cultural groups that should preserve their individual cultural
features.
c) Ethnic factors become a central part of adolescents’ identity and are not
submerged in an attempt to assimilate into the majority culture.
(1) Bicultural identity suggests that adolescents can draw from their
own culture and also integrate themselves into the dominant
culture.
F. Depression and Suicide: Psychological Difficulties in Adolescence
1. Adolescent Depression
a) Depression and suicide are two critical psychological difficulties for
adolescents.
b) Although many adolescents experience depressed moods, only about three
percent experience major depression, a full-blown psychological disorder in
which depression is severe and lingers for long periods.
c) Depression has several causes, including biological, environmental, and
social factors.
d) Girls have higher incidences of depression than boys, but the cause is not
clear.
(1) Are there more stresses on the female gender role?
(2) Is this the result of girls’ tendencies to react to stress by turning
inward, thus experiencing helplessness and hopelessness?
(3) Hormonal differences are not a factor.

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2. Adolescent Suicide
a) Approximately 300 adolescents commit suicide each year, and for each
successful suicide, there are an estimated 10 to 100 attempted suicides.
b) Suicide is the second most common cause of death for 15- to 24-year-olds.
c) More girls attempt suicide than boys but more boys complete it.
(1) Males tend to use more violent methods.
d) In the second half of the twentieth century, suicide among youth increased
600%
e) One reason for the increase is the increase in teenage stress; other factors
include:
(1) Depression
(2) Family conflicts
(3) History of abuse and/or neglect
(4) Drug and alcohol abuse
(5) In cluster suicide one suicide leads to attempts by others to kill
themselves.
f) There are some clear warning signs of potential suicide. These include:
direct or indirect talk about suicide; school difficulties; making
arrangements as if preparing for a long trip; writing a will; loss of appetite
or excessing eating; general depression; dramatic changes in behaviour;
and preoccupation with death in music, art or literature.
G. Focus on Research: The Crisis of Suicide among Aboriginal Youth
1. While not all Aboriginal communities are affected by high suicide rates, in some
communities, the rate of adolescent suicide was 8 times higher than the national
average.
2. Aboriginal youth in Canada face numerous challenges, for example, poverty. These
challenges are called risk factors
3. There also exist protective factors, which are factors that can help overcome risk
factors (e.g., access to resources)
4. Researchers at the University of British Columbia and the University of Victoria
have examined Aboriginal suicide and the impact of risk and protective factors and
have come to some positive conclusions
a) In general, suicide risk among people is more or less the same, regardless
of Aboriginal status
b) The stresses and identity crises that underlie youth suicide in general also
underlie Aboriginal youth suicide, but the marginalization of Aboriginal
culture puts youth at increased risk
c) Communities in which cultural continuity is preserved and encouraged
have lower suicide rates – so focusing on such continuity is important.
d) Chandler et al. devised a way to measure cultural continuity and found that
self-government, success in land claims, control over education, health
services and policing, and the establishment of community facilities for the
preservation of culture were found to protect communities against suicide.
H. Becoming an Informed Consumer of Development: Preventing Adolescent Suicide
1. If you suspect an adolescent, or anyone else, is contemplating suicide, act!
2. Talk to the person without judging.
3. Talk specifically about suicidal thoughts
4. Try to distinguish between general upset and more serious danger.
5. Be supportive.
6. Take charge of finding help.

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7. Make the environment safe, removing potential weapons.

8. Do not keep suicide talk or threats secret.
9. Do not challenge, dare, or use verbal shock treatment.
10. Make a contract with the person, getting a promise or a commitment not to
attempt suicide until you have talked further.
11. Don’t be overly reassured by a sudden improvement in mood.
12. For immediate help, contact a suicide hotline such as Kids Help Phone at 1-800-
668-6868.

II. Relationships: Family and Friends

A. Family Ties: Changing Relations with Relations (Family relationships change during when
adolescents begin to question, and sometimes rebel, against their parents’ views.)
1. The Quest for Autonomy
a) Adolescents are seeking AUTONOMY—independence and a sense of
control over their lives.
b) The increase in autonomy usually occurs gradually throughout adolescence
and changes the parent-child relationship from an asymmetrical to a more
balanced one (for power and influence).
2. Culture and Autonomy
a) The degree of autonomy achieved varies with families and with cultural
expectations (Western societies tend to value individualism whereas Asian
cultures value collectivism).
b) Cultural and gender differences emerge in autonomy.
(1) Culturally, Western adolescents seek autonomy at an earlier age
than their Eastern counterparts, culturally valuing individualism
over collectivism.
(2) Gender plays a role, with males permitted more autonomy at an
earlier age than females.
3. The Myth of the Generation Gap
a) The GENERATION GAP, a divide between parents, and adolescents,
attitudes, values, aspirations, and world views, is mostly a myth;
adolescents and their parents tend to share the same major values.
b) In matters of personal taste, differences are often great.
4. Conflicts With Parents
a) Adolescents’ argumentativeness and new assertiveness can initially cause
conflict in the family but are usually resolved by the end of this stage.
(1) Often the disagreements involve differing definitions of, and
rationales for, appropriate and inappropriate conduct.
(2) Newly sophisticated reasoning abilities may lead teens to think
about parental rules in more complex ways.
5. Cultural Differences in Parent-Child Conflicts During Adolescence
a) There is less conflict in “traditional” preindustrial cultures.
(1) In industrialized societies, with an emphasis on individualism,
independence is expected of adolescents.
(2) In more traditional societies, individualism is less valued;
adolescents are less inclined to seek independence resulting in less
parent-child conflict.
B. Relationships with Peers: The Importance of Belonging
1. Social Comparison

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a) Peer relationships are more critical to adolescents than at any other time of
life.
b) Peers provide an opportunity for social comparison.
2. Reference Groups
a) REFERENCE GROUPS are a group of people with whom one compares
oneself.
b) Reference groups present a set of norms or standards against which
adolescents judge their social success.
3. Cliques and Crowds: Belonging to a Group
a) One of the consequences of the increasing cognitive sophistication of
adolescents is the ability to group others in more discriminating ways.
b) Adolescents are usually part of some identifiable group.
c) CLIQUES are 2 to 12 people who have frequent interaction.
d) CROWDS are larger groups where people share some characteristic but
often don’t interact with each other.
e) There are strong expectations that people in a particular crowd behave in
specific ways. (Is it a self-fulfilling prophecy?)
f) Membership in particular cliques and crowds
(1) Determined by degree of similarity with members of group such as
substance abuse
(2) Group labels are abstractions
(a) Requiring teens to make judgements of people
(i) With whom they may interact only rarely and
(ii) Of whom they have little direct knowledge
4. Gender Relations
a) Gender relations change during the period of adolescence.
b) SEX CLEAVAGE is characteristic of early adolescence where girls play with
girls, boys with boys.
c) With puberty, there is hormonal and social pressure to interact and
eventually most adolescents are in mixed-sex cliques.
d) At the end of adolescence, cliques become less powerful and male-female
relationships become the focus.
C. Cultural Dimensions: Ethnic Segregation: The Great Divide of Adolescence
1. Patterns of ethnic segregation continue to appear in schools and colleges.
a) Minority students may actively seek support from others who share their
minority status to affirm their own identity, which is a crucial
developmental issue in adolescents.
b) In schools where rigid tracking systems are prevalent, minority students
may find themselves in classes with proportionally more or fewer minority
students. This practice may inadvertently maintain and promote ethnic
segregation.
2. This ethnic segregation is not inevitable—Adolescents who have interacted
regularly and extensively with other ethnicities in childhood are more likely to
have diverse friends.
a) Schools that actively promote integration in classes create an environment
that fosters diverse friendships.
D. Popularity and Rejection
1. There are various categories of popularity in adolescence.
a) POPULAR adolescents are those who are most liked.

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b) CONTROVERSIAL ADOLESCENTS are liked by some peers and disliked by

others.
c) REJECTED ADOLESCENTS are actively disliked, and their peers may react
to them in an obviously negative manner.
d) NEGLECTED ADOLESCENTS receive relatively little attention from their
peers in the form of either positive or negative interactions.
2. In most cases, popular and controversial adolescents tend to enjoy a higher status,
while rejected and neglected adolescents share a lower status.
E. Conformity: Pressure in Adolescence
1. PEER PRESSURE is the influence of one’s peers to conform to their behaviour and
attitudes.
a) For other decisions, adolescents turn to those whom they consider to be
experts in that field or problem area.
b) In essence, susceptibility to peer pressure does not rise in adolescence; in
fact, conformity decreases as adolescents increase their own autonomy.
F. Juvenile Delinquency: The Crimes of Adolescence
1. UNDERSOCIALIZED DELINQUENTS are raised with little discipline, or by harsh
and uncaring parents: they have not been appropriately socialized.
a) They tend to be relatively aggressive and violent early in life; are rejected
by their peers; are likely to have ADHD; and are usually less intelligent than
average.
b) They are relatively unlikely to be rehabilitated.
2. SOCIALIZED DELINQUENTS are adolescent delinquents who know and subscribe
to the norms of society, and who are fairly normal psychologically.
a) They are usually influenced by a group and their criminal behaviour is
usually committed with a group.

III. Dating, Sexual Behaviour, and Teenage Pregnancy

A. Dating: Close Relationships in the Twenty-First Century
1. Changing cultural factors largely determine when and how adolescents begin to
date.
2. Today, some adolescents believe that dating is outmoded and limiting.
3. The Functions of Dating
a) Dating serves the functions of learning how to establish intimacy,
entertainment, and developing one’s own identity.
b) Research indicates that most dating in early and middle adolescence is
superficial so it does not help in learning to establish intimacy.
c) True intimacy is more common in late adolescence where it can be a
potential prelude to marriage.
d) For homosexual adolescents, dating presents challenges such as
homophobic prejudice and finding partners willing to openly express their
sexual orientation
4. Dating and Ethnicity
a) Cultural influences affect dating patterns for minority adolescents,
especially if the concept of dating is unfamiliar to parents.
B. Sexual Relationships
1. Sex and sexual relationships are a major concern for adolescents.
2. Masturbation
a) Masturbation, sexual self-gratification, is the initiation into sexuality for
most adolescents.

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(1) Although it is widespread it can still cause feelings of shame.

(2) Today masturbation is seen as normal, healthy, and harmless; just
opposite to the historical legacy of shame, guilt, and punishment.
3. Sexual Intercourse
a) Ages for sexual intercourse have been declining:
b) The double standard, in which premarital sex was considered permissible
for males but not for females, has largely been supplanted by a new norm,
permissiveness with affection, where premarital intercourse is viewed as
permissible for both men and women if it occurs in the context of a long-
term, committed, or loving relationship.
C. Sexual Orientation: Heterosexuality, Homosexuality, and Bisexuality
1. Sexual orientation questions also occur at adolescence.
a) It is difficult to determine exact proportions of homosexuality because
sexuality is seen as a continuum.
b) Many teens experiment with homosexuality – Around 20 to 25 percent of
adolescent boys and 10 percent of adolescent girls have at least one same-
sex sexual encounter
c) Sexuality is further complicated by the distinction between sexual
orientation (which refers to a person’s sexual interests) and gender identity
(the gender a person believes he or she is psychologically). Sexual
orientation and gender identity are not necessarily related to one another.
2. What Determines Sexual Orientation?
a) for the factors that induce people to develop as heterosexual, homosexual, or
bisexual are not understood, but evidence suggests that biological and
genetic factors seem to play an important role.
b) Psychological family theories do not hold up because no one type of family
dynamic is related to sexual orientation.
3. Challenges Facing Gay and Lesbian Adolescents
a) Homosexual adolescents have a very difficult time and they are at greater
risk for depression and suicide.
D. Teenage Pregnancies
1. While the general trend in Canada is that, as a whole, women are becoming
mothers later, approximately 2.5& of teenage girls become pregnant – a rate
substantially lower than in the US or Britain.
2. Teenage pregnancy can be devastating to both mother and child.
a) Mothers often have to leave school and be tied to low-paying jobs or
government assistance, a cycle of poverty and pregnancy.
b) Children usually have poor health, poor school performance, and are more
likely to become teenage parents themselves.
3. The Canadian Paediatric Society identifies the following adolescents to be at risk of
unprotected intercourse and subsequent pregnancy:
a) Those who are experiencing social and family difficulties
b) Those whose mothers were adolescent mothers
c) Those undergoing early puberty
d) Those who have been sexually abused
e) Those who have frequent social absenteeism or lack vocational goals
f) Those with siblings who were pregnant during adolescence
g) Those who use tobacco, alcohol, and other substances
h) Those who live in group homes or detention centres or who are street-
involved

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LECTURE SUGGESTIONS
Understanding Adolescent Depression: What to Do
Although mood swings are considered normal or to be expected during adolescence, there is also a
high incidence of forms of depression during adolescence that too often gets overlooked as
something that will pass. A key aspect of depression is the cognition that “I am not adequate, I’m not
OK as a person.” Since adolescence is a time of such rapid and dramatic change in almost all areas
(physical, mental, emotional), adolescents go through times when there seems to be no natural or
comfortable way to be. Just when one has gotten used to being a child, something changes,
including one’s own and others expectations.

Remind students, too, of adolescent egocentrism: the teenager feels as if everyone is watching
him/her (imaginary audience) and that no one really understands what it is like for him/her
(personal fable). If you put this feeling of isolation together with uncomfortable and seemingly
uncontrollable changes it is not surprising the teenager has a great deal of self-doubt, self-
recrimination, and frustration.

When family and friends are dealing with someone in depression they often do—with the best of
loving intentions—the very worst thing you can do. How is that? Well, so often the natural response
people have to someone who is depressed is to try and cheer them up; make them feel better. That
usually takes the form of reminding them of all of the good things in their life, of really how lucky
they are for what they have, and how much worse so many other people in the world (i.e., the
children in China, India, Bosnia, etc.) have it. Again, the intention is to cheer up the depressed
adolescent (or grown-up); but look at what has really been communicated. What has
unintentionally been said (or at least what almost all depressed people will hear) is that you have
no right to be depressed! You really are inadequate, stupid, or just plain selfish to be feeling like
that!

Reassuring or cheering up someone who is depressed is the best way to make them more
depressed. It invalidates the real emotions they are feeling and tells them that they should not be
feeling that. Whew! What they have learned for sure is that they should not tell you (the reassuring
person) about their feelings. So they need to stuff their feelings down (one of the genuine
psychological factors in developing depression). With authentic feelings stuffed down one feels
superficial, and out of contact with oneself and the world, and eventually stops being able to contact
his/her feelings at all.

So, what should one do? Don’t tell an adolescent, “I know just what you’re feeling.” Even if it’s true,
he/she cannot hear that so it will not ring true to him/her. Empathy is the key. Let the depressed
adolescent know that you are concerned about him/her, that you care about him/her, and that it is
obvious that he/she has some very difficult concerns. Allow him/her to be where he/she is and
remind him/her that you are able to be with him/her without trying to change or control him/her
or their moods. Just being there is the most active, helpful thing you can do for a depressed friend.

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Suicide in Adolescence: Don’t Ignore the Warning Signs

Use Handout 6-3 to go over the warning signs for suicide. Suicide rates among adolescents have
increased substantially since 1950—it is the second leading cause of death for this age group,
following accidents and homicides. As in depression, an adolescent’s life often feels chaotic and
confused, his/her own identity is not clear, and his/her problems seem overwhelming, unique and
insoluble. Suicide is a grasp for a permanent solution.

Breaking the Ties: Family Dynamics

One of the key tasks of adolescence is separating from one’s family and becoming an independent
person. This can be a very difficult task depending on the ongoing dynamics in the family. Ideally,
adolescence is when a person starts to become more inner-directed rather than psychologically
dependent on the family. Also, ideally, the family wants to help the teenager develop his/her own
identity and allows him/her to try on new behaviours, ideas, etc., to find his/her own. This is what
happens, happily, in the majority of families. But what happens if the family is not ready to let this
child go?

Some families become what is called “child focused.” That means that the grown-ups in the family
related to each other only in terms of the children—not as individual adults. The children,
therefore, are critical to that couple to keep them together. If they lost the children they might lose
their relationship. Couples often don’t even realize that they have turned into this kind of child-
focused relationship—it may not be conscious. But, think about how powerful a drive it would be
for a child-focused couple to hold on to their child to try and keep the adolescent from leaving them.
Since, as noted before, this motive is not always (not often, in fact) conscious, the family would
believe that it was holding on to their child for the child’s own best interests (not for their own).
Remember, we are not talking about bad or abusive families, we are just talking about grownups
who have probably not had their own needs met and are doing the best they can. But, look at the
formula for difficulty.

Ask students what they would expect in this kind of situation. There are two most likely scenarios.
One scenario is that the adolescent will unconsciously agree to follow his/her parents’ desires and
stop trying to separate from the family. This adolescent tends to become a home-body: somewhat
passive, usually shy, with few friends or interests outside of things he/she can watch or do at home.
(By the way, that very behaviour supports the family’s belief that the adolescent is not ready to be
out on his/her own and needs the extra help and protection of the family.)

The second scenario is where the adolescent pulls against the family to break out. Remember,
unconsciously the family tries to pull the teenager back. So it will take a large amount of effort to
break out (like leaving earth’s gravitational force). The adolescent in this scenario is the one who
exhibits wild, rebellious behaviour. Since he/she is unsure of how to be his/her own person, the
most psychologically logical thing to do is to go to the extreme and act (try to be) just the opposite
of what the family wants. Then he/she will be free. And what is a family’s usual reaction to wild,
rebellious behaviour? Usually the family will try to “pull the child back,” either by guilt (a big one)
or by threats. Since being pulled back is the very thing the adolescent is fighting, the situations will
usually continue to escalate. This very difficult situation is, in fact, often psychologically logical if
one looks at the whole family situation. Handout 6-4 is useful for an assignment on family
dynamics.

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When Is It Delinquency?
While they are experimenting with new behaviours and values, it is normal for adolescents to begin
breaking the grown-up rules that they have been following since they were children. In fact, some
rule-breaking behaviour is considered healthy for adolescents. But when does rule-breaking
become delinquency? How does one differentiate rebellion from exuberance? Research indicates
that one of the main factors in chronic delinquency is lack of parental supervision. How does a
parent provide adequate supervision without suffocating the adolescent?

CLASS ACTIVITIES
Reflective Journal Entry #12: Identity
Ask students to think back to their own adolescence and identify the groups and individual people
that had most effect on their own sense of identity and self. Use Handout 6-5.

The Influence of Peers

1. Ask students to identify the types of cliques and significant groups that existed in their high
schools. Identify the types of clothing, behaviour, social styles, and other characteristics that tied
the groups together.

2. Ask your students to make lists of current teen slang. Compare it with slang from older
generations. Make an overhead from Handout 6-6 showing slang from the past.

3. Ask students to design a “bill of rights and responsibilities” for adolescents. Have groups compare
their results with each other.

4. Either in conjunction with the above, or alone, ask students to create an “Advice to Parents of
Adolescents” flyer. What should parents of adolescents do and not do?

5. Have students get into groups reflecting the ideas of Marcia’s categories of identity
achievement—identity achievement, foreclosure, diffusion, or moratorium—reflecting where they
were at the end of high school. Also, ask the groups to talk about whether they went through a crisis
of decision making or not. Have groups share common perceptions and problems.

Critical Thinking Exercises

Ask students to think about how they learned about sex. Who told them the basic biological
information? More important, where did they learn the sexual mores or standards that they held
during high school? Did their own views agree with their peers? With their family? What process
would they recommend for future adolescents? Viewing either or both videos Teen Sex and
Pregnant Teens should set the tone in your class for a good discussion of these issues.

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SUPPLEMENTAL READING
Bower, B. (March 23, 1991). Teenage turning point: Does adolescence herald the twilight of girls’
self-esteem? Science News, 184–186.

Buchanan, Maccoby, & Dornbusch (1991). Caught between parents: Adolescents’ experience in
divorced homes. Adolescence, 30 (118), 453–461.

Cruz, J. E., Emery, R. E., & Turkheimer, E. (2012). Peer network drinking predicts increased alcohol
use from adolescence to early adulthood after controlling for genetic and shared environmental
selection. Developmental Psychology, 48, 1390–1402.

Elkind, D. (1984). All grown up and no place to go. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.

Erikson, E. H. (1968). Identity: Youth and crisis. New York, NY: W. W. Norton.

Levine, K. G. (1991). When good kids do bad things: A survival guide for parents of teenagers. New
York, NY: Pocket Books.
• An excellent, down-to-earth book written by a woman who has been a foster mother to
over 367 children in addition to her own two teenagers.

Pipher, M. (1994). Reviving Ophelia: Saving the selves of adolescent girls. New York, NY: Ballantine
Books.
• This best-seller looks at the various forces in modern society that cause girls to stifle
their creativity, intelligence, and ultimately their self-esteem. Pipher, a counselling
psychologist, discusses identity crises, alcohol and drug abuse, depression, sex and
violence, and the obsession with thinness in today’s adolescent girls’ lives.

Rutter, V. (January/February, 1995). Adolescence: Whose hell is it? Psychology Today, 54–68.
Wolf, A. E. (2011, November 3). The No. 1 mistake parents of teens make. The Globe and Mail.
Retrieved February 13, 2013, from http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/parenting/the-no-1-
mistake-parents-of-teens-make/article4183559/.

MULTIMEDIA IDEAS
Note: These assets are not necessarily owned or distributed by Pearson Education. They may
be available in your department or library or accessible online.

(See Handout 1-4 for a way to have your students think about and evaluate any videos you show in
class.)

Adolescence Development (Insight Media, 1990, 30 minutes)

• This video overviews key aspects of adolescent development and includes narration by
David Elkind.

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Pregnant Teens (ABC/Prentice Hall Video Library, 1995, 13:17 minutes)

• The Day One segment investigates why teen mothers in Sioux City, Iowa, decide to have
and keep their babies. Among the findings are that nearly every teen mother was the
child of a teen mother.

Take 30: Talking Teen Pregnancy (CBC Digital Archives, 1964, 16 minutes)
• This video is from 1964 and features a pregnant 16-year-old and a nun who runs a
home for girls like her. This video is great for starting a discussion about how teen
pregnancy and attitudes toward teen pregnancy have changed over the years.

Teen Sex—What’ll We Tell the Kids? (ABC/Prentice Hall Video Library, 1995, 13:11 minutes)
• Ted Koppel hosts an ABC News segment about teen sex and the consequences. Among
the questions asked are: What should public schools teach kids about sex? Does
information cause sexual activity? Should condoms be given out at public schools?

Teenage Pregnancy (Films for the Humanities and Sciences, 19 minutes)

• This video follows several teenagers through the births of their children and
subsequent changes in their lives. It is a realistic look at the responsibilities of teenage
pregnancy.

The Agenda with Steve Paikin: Teenage Mental Health (TVO, 2012, 55 minutes)
• This video is about depression in young people.

HANDOUTS
Handout 6-3: Danger Signals for Depression / Warning Signs of Potential Suicide
See Lecture Suggestions.

Handout 6-4: Understanding Family Scripts

See Lecture Suggestions.

Handout 6-5: Reflective Journal Entry #12: Identity

Use this handout to help your students reflect in their journals about how their identity was
formed.

Handout 6-6: Teen Slang: A Blast From the Past

Make an overhead of this handout for your discussion of teen slang. See Class Activities.

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 Chapter 6: Adolescence

Handout 6-3

SIGNS OF DEPRESSION
1. A general and lasting feeling of hopelessness and despair

2. Inability to concentrate, making reading, writing, and conversation difficult

3. Changes in physical activities, such as eating, sleeping, and sex. Frequent physical
complaints with no evidence of physical illness

4. Loss of self-esteem, which brings on continual questioning of personal worth

5. Withdrawal from others due to immense fear of rejection

6. Threats or attempts to commit suicide

7. Hypersensitivity to words and actions of others and general irritability

8. Misdirected anger and difficulty in handling most feelings

9. Feelings of guilt in many situations

10. Extreme dependency on others

SIGNS OF POTENTIAL SUICIDE

1. Withdrawal from contact with others

2. Sudden swings in mood

3. Recent occurrence of a life crisis or emotional shock

4. Personality change

5. Gift-giving of cherished belongings

6. Depression and helplessness

7. Aggression and/or risk taking

8. Direct threats to commit suicide

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Handout 6-4

UNDERSTANDING FAMILY SCRIPTS

To understand more about how your identification in your family of origin developed, take a few
minutes and think back to your adolescent days and answer the following questions:

When were you an adolescent?

What was the best thing that your family said about you or did for you?

Try and remember one exact day when that was said or done for you. Remember now what you felt
then.

When do you feel this way now?

Who did the family think you were like?

Did you have a nickname? How did you feel about it?

Did family members tell you what you would end up being? Or doing? Was it what you wanted to be
or do? How did you respond?

How do you think your family would have described you to a close friend of theirs? What were they
most concerned about for you?

What does your family want you to be like? To do in your life?

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 Chapter 6: Adolescence

Handout 6-5

REFLECTIVE JOURNAL ENTRY #12

Identity

Think back to your adolescence and identify the groups and individual people that had the most
effect on your sense of identity and self. Using Marcia’s identity statuses (Identity Achievement,
Moratorium, Identity Foreclosure, and Identity Diffusion), identify which categories you
experienced in high-school and the order you went through them.

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Handout 6-6

TEEN SLANG: A BLAST FROM THE PAST

1920 1930
JALOPY (OLD CAR) JERK (OBNOXIOUS PERSON)
LOOT (MONEY) NATURAL BORN (INNATE)
LUG (STUPID MAN) NERVOUS NELLIE (TIMID)
MASH (LOVE AFFAIR) NO SHOW (WHEN ONE FAILS TO SHOW UP)
NUMBER (CLEVER OR ATTRACTIVE
PERSON)

1940 1950

HUBBA HUBBA (EXPRESSION OF DELIGHT) BEATNIK (ONE ALIENATED FROM SOCIETY)

DAME (WOMAN) HOUND DOG (WOMAN CHASER)
NO CAN DO (UNABLE TO DO IT) IGGLE (TO PERSUADE SOMEONE)
PAD (HOME)
KEEN (SWELL, GOOD)

1960 1970
CHICK (YOUNG WOMAN) DUDE (GUY)
FAR OUT (STRANGE) FOXY (ATTRACTIVE)
GROOVY (EXCELLENT) FUNKY (SOULFUL)
LET IT ALL HANG OUT (BE CANDID) GET DOWN (DANCE)
RIGHT ON (APPROVAL)

1980 1990
FLY (COOL, ATTRACTIVE) BAD (GOOD)
FUNKY (STRANGE, BAD) HANGIN (BEING WITH FRIENDS)
GET A CLUE (UNDERSTAND) CRUISIN (LOOKING FOR A DATE)
GNARLY (EXCELLENT) PHAT (FINE)
RAD (RADICAL, BUT GOOD) STUPID (COOL)

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