Human Development Adolescence - Essay Example

Physical changes can mark significant stress reactions that can lead to a variety of negative behaviors.

            It is during this period that the desire to find independence from caregivers is strongly in their consciousness, and the level of stress will either increase or decrease about how their parental figures handle this new need for independence. More controlling families could lead the child to develop depressive symptoms while a liberating household might give them the freedoms they demand, therefore having minimal stress and stress reactions. Environment and the level of control placed over the youth during adolescence will determine whether or not this is a period of stress and storm. A highly controlling household acts as an impediment to perceived achievement, which is considered a strong factor in males that can lead to stronger emotional outbursts or negative stress responses (Kort-Butler, 2009).

            In terms of finding self-identity, it is often the opinion of peers that dictate how a person views themselves and they consider the thoughts of people in various reference groups when molding their self-concept. Media can play a big part in the child’s viewpoint, such as with young females comparing themselves to beauty ideologies represented in many television commercials, and then finding dissatisfaction for not being able to attain these physical traits. Even though this is a distorted view, the outcomes of personal adolescent stress that is caused by reference groups can be quite negative.

            It is common for adolescents to go through what is referred to as a moratorium, where they have non-conformist attitudes and a strong rebellion toward parents, with peer groups considering their behaviors to be intense and outside of the social norm (Weiten & Lloyd, 2005). Youths that fit this profile often will not commit to parental moral values, or sometimes those of peers, and they find themselves (at least temporarily) part of the out-group. This is a period marked by a strong need for group affiliation with most youths to develop a healthy sense of self-identity. Coping with stress reactions for this type of youth could lead to dependency on drugs, thoughts of suicide, or a variety of defense mechanisms such as denial over their emotional state.

            The evidence for these statements is drawn from personal experience as an adolescent and the professional evidence provided in the resource materials. Concepts of adolescence are often quite similar from one research study to the next and they all promote a common theme that adolescence can be a very difficult time in the child’s life. Depending on certain factors, such as a lifetime of experience building resiliency to different situations in their lives, adolescents will respond differently to stress or allow it to become an emotional problem at many different levels. From the experience-based view, having been an adolescent, it was a time when group ideals and opinions were very important and when they are perceived to be negative, it leads to feelings of isolation that are very stressful.