It is important to consider the environment in which an adolescent is raised. Parenting styles assist in explaining adolescent behavior. If an adolescent is raised in a safe and secure environment with parents that exhibit authoritative characteristics fostering an open and warm atmosphere, the adolescents are more psychosocially mature and competent (Yeh, 2003). These types of parents balance two very important tasks; they help to p... Show
... middle of paper ... ... interviewees, there is potential for bias which could significantly skew the data that I collected. Lastly, it would have been more beneficial to interview a sibling of the adolescent. I could have then explored the perspectives from all three roles within the family—the parent, sibling, and adolescent. From my conducted research and interviews, I have concluded that parents act as the most influential force during adolescent development. More research is needed in the field of how siblings play a role in adolescent development. Adolescents exhibit behaviors based on the influences that emerge from the context of the home. This environment incorporates many different factors including the number, age spacing, and birth order of siblings within the family. These factors, along with parenting patterns, serve as a bidirectional relationship in adolescent development. Changes in a teen's physical and thinking development come with big changes in their relationships with family and friends. Family relationships are often reorganized during puberty. Teens want more independence and more emotional distance between them and their parents. A teen's focus often shifts to social interactions and friendships. This includes same-gender friends, same-gender groups of friends, and cross-gender groups of friends. Sexual maturity triggers interest in dating and sexual relationships. Changes in relationship with selfDuring the teen years, a new understanding of one's self occurs. This may include changes in these self-concepts: IndependenceThis means making decisions for one's self and acting on one's own thought processes and judgment. Teens start to learn to work out problems on their own. As teens develop more reasoning and intuitive abilities, they start to face new responsibilities. They start to enjoy their own thoughts and actions. Teens also start to have thoughts and fantasies about their future and adult life (for instance, college or job training, work, and marriage). IdentityThis is defined as a sense of self or one's personality. One of the key tasks of adolescence is to reach a sense of a personal identity and a secure sense of self. A teen gets comfortable with, and accepts, a more mature physical body. They also learn to use their own judgment, and make decisions on their own. As these things happen, the teen addresses their own problems and starts to develop a concept of themselves. Trouble developing a clear concept of self or identity occurs when a teen can’t resolve struggles about who they are as a physical, sexual, and independent person. Self-esteemThis is how you feel about yourself. Self-esteem is determined by answering the question "How much do I like myself?" With the start of adolescence, a decrease in self-esteem is somewhat common. This is due to the many body changes, new thoughts, and new ways of thinking about things. Teens are more thoughtful about who they are and who they want to be. They notice differences in the way they act and the way they think they should act. Once teens start thinking about their actions and characteristics, they are faced with how they judge themselves. Many teens place importance on attractiveness. When teens don’t think they are attractive, it often causes poor self-esteem. Typically, self-esteem increases as teens develop a better sense of who they are. Changes in peer relationshipsTeens spend more time with friends. They report feeling more understood and accepted by their friends. Less and less time is spent with parents and other family members. Close friendships tend to develop between teens with similar interests, social class, and ethnic backgrounds. While childhood friendships tend to be based on common activities, teen friendships expand to include similarities in attitudes, values, and shared activities. Teen friendships also tend to be based on educational interests. Especially for girls, close, intimate, self-disclosing conversations with friends help to explore identities and define one's sense of self. Conversations within these important friendships also help teens explore their sexuality and how they feel about it. Teen boys' friendships are often less intimate than those of girls. Boys are more likely to have a group of friends who confirm each other's worth through actions and deeds rather than personal sharing. Changes in male-female relationshipsThe shift to male-female and sexual relationships is influenced by sexual interest and by social and cultural influences and expectations. Social and cultural expectations and behaviors in male-female or sexual relationships are learned from observations and practice. During adolescence, developmental tasks include struggles to gain control over sexual and aggressive urges. Discovering possible or actual love relationships also occurs. Sexual behaviors during adolescence may include impulsive behavior, a wide range of experimental interactions of mutual exploring, and eventually intercourse. Biological differences, and differences in the ways males and females socialize, set the stage for males and females to have different expectations of sexual and love relationships. These may influence sexual experiences and may also have consequences for later sexual behavior and partnerships. In time, having a mutually satisfying sexual partnership within a love relationship may be found. Changes in family relationshipsOne of the developmental tasks of adolescence is to separate from one's family as one becomes an independent young adult. A part of this process is coming to terms with specific feelings about one's family. During adolescence, teens start to realize that their parents and key authority figures don’t know everything or have solutions to all types of struggles. Some teen rebellion against parents is common and normal. Over time, disagreements often decrease. But relationships with mothers tend to change more than with fathers. As adolescents become more independent from their parents, they are more likely to turn to their peers for advice. How does relationships affect adolescent development?Friendships. Adolescence is a period of rapid change7—physically, emotionally, and socially—and relationships with friends play an important role in the lives of adolescents as they become increasingly independent , develop their own identity, and grapple with self-esteem.
How can family relationships affect an individual's development?What your child learns through the interactions between you and them is what they will carry for the rest of their life in regards to how to treat others. Through this socialization with family, your child will learn how to trust, seek friendships from others, and find comfort with others as well.
How does the family environment influence adolescent development?High levels of social anxiety or low levels of self-esteem tend to make adolescents more likely to adopt the perceived behaviors of their peers, as are those who have been rejected. Poor family relationships make adolescents more likely to attract and affiliate with deviant peers and to adopt their attitudes.
What role does the family have in adolescent identity development?Adolescent identity development is also influenced by parenting style [8]. Teenagers who do not experience abuse within their family achieve clearer identity than those who do [9]. Some researchers find that a positive parenting style lead to positive behaviors in their children, and the opposite is also true [10].
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