Adolescent Problems - Essay Example

Summary of Adolescent Interviews Marco is a 13 year old Caucasian male who lives with his parents in the suburbs. He states that his relationship with his parents is "okay" but he would like to have a little more freedom. He has one older brother who is 17 and upon talking to him, his parents seem to have a more authoritarian style of parenting. His father was in the military and he seems to have a very strong hold on the family and how they are growing up. Marco says that he feels that his parents are very strict and that he does not get to hang out with his friends in the way that he would like to do. He stays out of trouble so he thinks that his parents should be more lenient sometimes. He says that his dad always tells him he is strict "for his own good" but Marco really does not know what his father means by this. His brother has a little more leniency, but his father is always telling his brother that he has to be a man in whatever he does; Marco says his dad does not explain exactly what he means by "be a man." Marco hopes that his brother will not be like his father when he grows up because his father is sometimes very mean. When talking to Marco, the theory that seemed to best fit him was Piaget's especially when he talks about the formal operational stage. Marco seemed to be very good at thinking logically and he talked about the future and how it would be for him and his brother. He seemed to be a very well put together young man and although he said that his father was strict, I think this was keeping him out of trouble. In my opinion, Marco's father was the authoritarian parenting style because of the rules he was expected to follow and the fact that he was punished if he did not follow the rules. His mother did not seem to have much to say in the matter according to Marco. I do not think that his father would change his attitude when the boys are older because of his military training. Keisha is a 14 year old, African-American female who lives with her mother in a large home in a nice area. Her mother and father are divorced and Keisha spends equal time with her mother or her father. She has two siblings, a 21 year old sister and a 7 year old sister. Keisha says she gets along wit both of her parents very well and they are friendly, though they are divorced. Keisha's parents seem to have a more of a Authoritative parenting style. Keisha explained that if they are caught breaking one of the house rules, her mother and her father would explain to them what they had done wrong and give them a hand in deciding what should be done about it. She never felt restricted by her parents and found that if she was punished, the punishment always fit what they had done wrong. Her parents never believed in spanking, so this was a blessing to her. I think Keisha fit Kohlberg's theory of moral development because her parents seemed like they were attempting to help her find her own reasons for doing well. I could see that Keisha was right in line with what Kohlberg said about at the age of 15, the child begins to think for themselves and that they make judgments based on intentions rather than on consequences. Because Keisha's parents talk to her about what she has done wrong and help her decide what the punishment should be, I believe that she is able to make her own judgment about what is right or wrong. Interestingly enough, Keisha is a straight "A" student and she loves school. By contrast, Marco was a "C" student and hated school. I could not help but think that the reason Keisha does so well in school is because she feels loved by her parents. Marco actually said that he was often afraid of his father at times. Albert is a 21 year old male who lives on his own, though he is in his first apartment. His mother and he did not get along according to him, so he thought it best to move out of her house and get a place of his own. His father died when he as 17 and his mother has had a difficult time dealing with his father's death. He feels that when his father was alive, his mother was not as hard on him as she is now. When Albert was at his mother's house, she was more an Authoritarian parent, especially after his father died. He felt he could not move without his mother criticizing him in some way. He has his own job and his own money now, and he's taking care of himself. For Albert, I would say that Bowlby's Attachment theory would fit. It seemed that he really did not have a relationship with his mother of secure attachment. She was always yelling at him or in his words, criticizing him, so they were not able to form a strong bond. I do not think that their relationship will change unless his mother can get over her grieving. Juan whose nickname is "Tito" is a Hispanic male who is 17 years old. He lives with his family and he has three brothers who are older than he is and two sisters who are younger. He did not mention how old each of them were. Juan says that his family is a good one and that his parents love all of their children. I believe that he has a secure attachment to his family (Bowlby's theory of Attachment) and I think that this will remain as they get older. This family seemed to really love their children. References Atherton J S (2011) Learning and Teaching; Piaget's developmental theory [On-line: UK] retrieved from http://www.learningandteaching.info/learning/piaget.htm Read More