Understanding Your Teen During the teen years, a person makes the transition out of childhood and into adulthood. It is a journey from dependence to independence – one that involves many changes in every area: physically, emotionally, mentally, spiritually, and socially. During these years, teens question their identity, what they believe in and their purpose in life. In short, they are searching people trying to discover and make sense of themselves and how they fit into the world. During this process, it is common for teens and parents to experience some degree of conflict. Teens begin to recognize that their parents are not perfect and they make mistakes. Indeed, adolescents begin to focus their attention on the flaws in their parents. Many times teens will argue with a parent and say, well if you do it then why can’t I? They are constantly scrutinizing their parent’s actions; their friends opinions and acceptance are more important now than what their parents say or think. When teens are growing and learning more about who they are they often go through a period of rejecting their parent’s values – including those concerning church, synagogue and society. This is actually a very normal phenomenon. Teens are at a point where they are challenging what they have been taught so far. Why Do Teens Not Always Believe What Their Parents Believe? Tips for Parents When teens rebel and act out against their parent’s ideals it is quite common for parents to think that their parenting skills are inadequate and that they have somehow failed as parents. Questions such as, why is this happening? or where did we go wrong? can disturb their peace of mind. Parents need to know that raising teenagers is a tough job for everyone. If their teens are uncooperative, it’s more likely to be a developmental issue rather than a personal assault; it’s the child’s stage of life that is to blame. Parents can help themselves by building a support system, talking to other parents of teens, attending parenting classes for this age group and staying in close touch with their children’s teachers. Keeping lines of communication with their children open will make it easier for parents to understand what their teens are going through. Remaining calm and non-reactive will encourage open communication. In this way, parents can help to minimize their teenagers rebellious tendencies and maximize their own ability to help their youngster negotiate the challenges of adolescence. |
When Teens reject their Parent’s values – Sarah Chana Radcliffe
February 8, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Speak Your Mind