Adolescent psychology is an ambiguous term, because on the one hand, it is a science that studies the behavior of children who have entered puberty, and on the other, the age-specific behavior and distinctive features of mental processes.
In fact, teenage psychology is quite contradictory, its distinguishing feature is inconstancy and frequent manifestations of rebellion. In adolescence, a child says goodbye to childhood: he begins to learn a lot of new things about his personality and think critically, denying the usual behavioral norms.
Features of adolescent development
Puberty is considered one of the most difficult periods in a child’s development. During puberty, a child begins to develop into an adult. This is reflected in all aspects of a teenager’s life, affecting anatomical and physical formation, intellectual and moral development, etc. Adolescence is also reflected in educational, work and play activities.
Since during puberty the whole life of a child changes, his psyche also adapts, old foundations are broken and new ones appear. Studying becomes more difficult due to more serious requirements, increased workload and new subjects. As a result, the child is forced to learn to think deeper, generalize and give arguments.
Also, the child’s principles, worldview, certain social position, and position in the environment change. In his home circle, his opinion becomes more significant, along with this, new demands are made, which become more serious every year.
With increased school workload, the teenager's intelligence became more and more refined. Previously unprecedented modifications of character arise, he begins to think, analyze situations, reason, and so on. The period of maturation of a child’s personality is directly related to puberty, which makes the situation much more complicated.
Psychology and physiology at 15 years old
Psychology of age
At the age of 15, the emotional and psychological state of adolescents returns to normal.
The ability to control your emotions and actions begins to develop. The final formation of character occurs earlier in girls.
The perception of boys and girls is very different. The former go ahead to achieve their goals, the latter try to act less radically, looking for roundabout ways.
Young people are more likely than girls to show unreliability and rebel.
But the most problematic at this age are girls who experience their feelings in such a way that they are not visible to others. Therefore, the motives for many actions of the fairer sex remain unclear.
During this period, a sense of humor develops and irony appears.
Children learn to think originally by putting familiar objects or people in unexpected situations.
An ideal appears that teenagers strive to conform to both in appearance and clothing, and in behavior. Any deviation from the standard turns out to be very painful.
Physiology of age
At the age of 15, the maturation of the body ends.
Previously, the limbs grew unevenly, the body remained small. Now the body begins to grow rapidly. Girls are less active and much calmer than boys.
In girls, a subcutaneous fat layer begins to form, which is distributed throughout the body, forming the outline of the figure. The menstrual cycle is normalized.
The chest takes on a rounded shape.
In boys, the back and pectoral muscles begin to develop, the body gets rid of childhood roundness, and subcutaneous fat disappears.
Sperm maturation occurs. The “breaking of the voice” ends, the shape of the larynx finally changes: the thyroid cartilage acquires a sharp protrusion formed due to the peculiar connection of the plates.
The Adam's apple appears.
Common problems of adolescence
The main trends of advancement in society have become more complex, the rhythm of life has accelerated, and the preference for a hedonic lifestyle has an impact on the development of the modern teenager. In this regard, children often show aggression, passivity or are depressed, and therefore cannot determine the correct moral values and understand the meaning of their existence.
The psychology of modern teenagers differs significantly from the psychology of children and adults. The main value becomes one's own pleasure. Equally important things fade into the background.
The main problems of adolescence include:
- inability to manage anger, passive-aggressive behavior in order to unbalance adults and lack of awareness that arises due to the suppression of one’s emotions.
- emotional instability.
- thoughts of suicide, which are caused by low self-esteem, indifference on the part of parents, depression and a feeling of loneliness.
- intimate attraction to individuals of the same sex.
- teenage depression, which is expressed by depressed mood, feelings of worthlessness, somatic abnormalities and other reasons.
Anatomy and physiological characteristics of adolescents
The teenage period is characterized, first of all, by physical changes - the proportions of a teenager’s body, his height and weight change. Body growth occurs disproportionately - first the head, arms and legs reach the size of an adult, and then the torso. This provokes internal conflict and non-acceptance of oneself by a teenager.
There is a rapid development of the muscular system, which negatively affects the cardiovascular system. Changes in vascular and muscle tone lead to rapid fatigue and a sharp change in emotional state in adolescents. Such disruptions are also observed in other organs: the heart, lungs, and the blood supply to the brain is disrupted.
The rapid growth of organs and the body is due to the influence of sex hormones. This process is characterized by the appearance of secondary sexual characteristics.
Independence is an indicator of adulthood
The more independent a teenager is, the more he looks like an adult.
Independence is self-confidence and the desire to try an unfamiliar task, cultivating in oneself the desire to refuse help, use it only in extreme cases, developing will and determination, these are any actions that a child carries out on his own, without the prompting and help of adults.
Discipline and the ability to fulfill the reasonable demands of the older generation are a manifestation of independence. But as teenagers, everything you learned to do as a child is no longer enough for adults to rightfully consider you independent.
Agree, if a five-year-old child took on tying his shoes and succeeded, adults will certainly rejoice at his skill and independence. But it would never occur to them to admire a teenager just because he ties his shoes. It’s another matter if he does his homework on his own or takes on some of the parental chores around the house.
The main features of independence
- ability to act on one's own initiative;
- the ability to perform usual tasks without turning to adults for help, without their control;
- the ability to independently solve problems set by adults;
- the ability to act correctly in an unfamiliar situation (set a goal, take into account conditions, carry out basic planning, get results);
- the ability to control oneself and evaluate the results of one’s activities;
- apply already known knowledge, skills and abilities in an unfamiliar situation.
You need to start nurturing independence from an early age for your child.
| Motto | |
| Help me! | I am myself! |
| It’s easier and more convenient to depend on others, to implement other people’s decisions rather than your own, but at the same time to be protected from mistakes and failures. After all, if something unfavorable happens, then there is always someone to shift the responsibility to - “I didn’t decide that!” | It’s much more comfortable to do what you think is necessary, to act as you decide. Such people, first of all, are responsible to themselves, often get into trouble, experience disappointments, experience failures, but thereby learn from their mistakes and try not to make them in the future. |
How to communicate with a teenager
All adults were once teenagers. Memories about yourself during the transition period, about your actions, and the emotions you experienced can help parents understand the reasons for the difficult behavior of their children. But comparing your son or daughter to yourself is not the best solution. A child is a completely different person, with his own mental reality and vision of the world.
To avoid losing contact with your child, you should:
- Be interested in and support his hobbies. If you can’t do an interesting activity together, then don’t criticize or devalue your child’s interest.
- Pay attention to physical changes, but try to behave delicately and not focus on the child’s appearance. It is worth encouraging him, reminding him that you love him. It is important to help cope with problematic issues that trouble a teenager. If you need to lose a few pounds, exercise with him. If you need to update your wardrobe, help with this.
- Listen carefully and talk less - a rule that helps parents maintain a trusting relationship with their children. Do not try to teach or give advice until the child himself asks for it. Don't forget to ask his opinion on various issues. This will give the teenager a sense of self-worth.
- Hug your child. Teenagers, as before, need a caring and warm attitude. But tenderness should be shown appropriately - it is unlikely that a 16-year-old boy or girl will enthusiastically embrace the idea of hugging his mother in front of his friends.
Accept your child for who he is. Don’t try to make your copy out of it or create a non-existent ideal. Your child is an individual who does not need a mask.
Psychology of a teenager: brief information
Psychology of adolescence is applicable to children 11-17 years old. This is the period of emergence of new personality traits. It is already customary to treat a child like an adult, but you still have to bear responsibility for him, like a child.
At this time, many parents lose contact with their children, plunging into a series of unproductive conflicts. On the other hand, parental connivance also causes serious problems.
Even if a teenager's communication style becomes unacceptable to parents, you need to continue talking to him. Have the strength to say no when you really need to. A lot of impulsive behavior happens in adolescence, so parents have to be constantly on guard. It is important to discuss with teenagers their intentions.
How to talk to a teenager so that a serious crisis does not happen. Do this in a friendly and business-like manner - as with an adult. Firmness is important in cases where the child begins to “skid”.
The psychology of adolescence is structured in such a way that the child resists any imposition in every possible way and tries to defend his freedom. They feel like adults and require appropriate treatment. Suspecting that they are being treated differently, they become indignant.
No matter how difficult it may be, teenagers need to be supported and gently controlled, even when you want to give up. Self-elimination can lead to even bigger problems that you will have to solve later.
What are the characteristics of children of adolescence
Parents and teachers need to know how adolescence differs from other periods of life. Understanding the processes that occur at the physiological and mental level allows you to survive the crisis more calmly, without serious shocks, and maintain a warm relationship with your child.
Hormonal storms and psychological maturation, the desire to separate from the family creates a great burden. It causes special behavior and reactions in adolescents.
They are embarrassed by the stares. Embarrassment is associated with an overly critical attitude towards one’s own appearance and a painful perception of criticism.
Growing children depend on the opinions of friends and classmates. Under the influence of peers they can harm themselves. It is important for teenagers to show their strength and fearlessness and not “disgrace themselves.”
The period from 13 to 15 years is considered especially dangerous. It is then that children often commit rash actions that are dangerous to themselves and others.
Active hormonal changes make themselves felt not only by mood swings, but also by memory loss. Children aged 13-15 often find it difficult to maintain attention in lessons and remember new material.
Teenagers think about their purpose in life, study what they like and what doesn’t suit them. This manifests itself both in worldview and in appearance. That is why you can often see teenagers in unusual clothes, with piercings and tattoos, with hair dyed in all colors of the rainbow.
Overcoming a crisis period: advice from a psychologist
Take advice from a psychologist. What will help overcome the crisis?
To do this, the child will have to complete a number of tasks
:
- Positive relationships with peers, friendships.
- Accepting your own appearance.
- Acceptance of one’s gender, awareness of what the female and male social roles are.
- Friendly, trusting contact with parents.
- Acquiring responsibility and initiative.
- Awareness of your abilities, choice of profession.
Without the help of parents, it is difficult to get through the crisis safely. Father and mother should recognize that their child is a separate, independent person. Change your behavior model if you see acute rejection of the previous model.
The above completed tasks indicate that the crisis has been overcome. The role of parents in this is great - a lot depends on their behavior. Does your son or daughter need advice or conversation? Don't push them away by thinking the problem is stupid and not worth bothering with. What is trivial to you can be incredibly meaningful to a high school student. Later he will understand the insignificance of the situation, but now it is of great importance to him.
Often a teenager unknowingly tests his parents’ strength. If you want to gain the authority and respect of your daughter or son, it all depends on your behavior. Prohibitions must be justified and observed. Warnings are real and implemented. It’s stupid to say: “I’ll kill you if you don’t come back on time and without warning,” or to threaten to “turn off the Internet” without subsequent implementation. The teenager begins to perceive all words spoken by his parents as empty. There is no longer any talk about authority and respect.
He should understand in advance what the consequences of violations are. Voice threats that you are ready and able to carry out - keep your word. For example, this could be deprivation of something for a certain time: computer games, watching TV, a short walk with friends, etc.
There's no point in getting carried away. Sanctions and punishments are extreme measures. It is much better if you establish a relationship of trust with your child. Trust, requests, a spirit of support, respect and cooperation are preferable to orders. It is difficult to achieve close and warm relationships if mistakes were made at the previous age stage.
A teenager's thoughts about the future
Assol's incredible dream came true. Scarlet Sails
In 1822, in Mecklenburg, Germany, a son, Heinrich, was born into the family of priest Ernst Schliemann. Today the whole world knows about his dream and how he achieved it. We are talking about excavations of the ancient Greek city of Troy. At the time, many doubted the authenticity of Homer's story about the Trojan War. Heinrich grew up, became an archaeologist, and in 1871 finally realized his dream. In 1847, he accepted Russian citizenship, and later American citizenship, and was successfully engaged in trade. Having saved money, he went to Asia Minor and found the city of Troy exactly where, according to Homer, it withstood the onslaught of the Greeks.
You've probably heard about the dream of the girl Assol.
But the hero of the novel “The Golden Calf” by I. Ilf and E. Petrov, Ostap Bender, dreamed of how he would escape from Russia with stolen millions and jewelry to Brazil, to Rio de Janeiro. I dreamed of a suit and white shoes.
Think about it! There are dreams that are sublime and bright. And there are also petty, worthless ones. What dream will you have? Who will benefit from its implementation?
