Adolescent Interview
In interviewing the adolescent, be sure to tell them that the interview is for a course on adolescent development. Assure them that they have the right not to answer questions and may stop the interview at any time. Let them know that no one will see the answers and that their names will not be used. The questions are designed to help you explore key areas of the teen’s development. Feel free to add questions to the interview as appropriate, but be sure to cover all of the issues. Many of the questions are meant to have more than one or two sentence answers. You will need to use interviewing skills to probe for richer responses: e.g. Can you tell me more about that? I don’t understand. Can you give me an example? How does that make you feel? How important is that to you? Using “uh-huh” and head nodding may also lead to more responding.
Begin your paper with a brief description of your adolescent. Then identify the adolescent’s identity status. Include different aspects of development (i.e., intimacy/dating relationships, family relationships, peer groups, sexuality, future/career goals, work patterns, school achievement and focus, etc.) and discuss how they contribute to their identity. If different in different areas of his/her life, describe this. Consider ethnicity, social class, gender, and sexuality. Connect the findings of your interview to the course content and developmental theory. DO NOT SIMPLY SUMMARIZE the interview. You do not need to report all your findings. Instead, create a narrative that highlights your relevant developmental findings. Show analysis of your interviewee in a developmental context throughout the paper when appropriate. Are they on track? Are they demonstrating typical or atypical development in certain areas? Greater depth of analysis will improve your grade. Do not simply provide a journal-like paper describing what the adolescent said. You must take the interview content and explore how it connects to development in an informed manner.
Interview Questions
- How old are you?
- What grade are you in?
- How old are your parents?
- What type of work do your parents do?
- How many brothers and sisters do you have?
- Can you recall anything that happened in your childhood that may not have happened to your friends? What? How do you feel about it?
- Do you think that this still affects you? How?
- Is there anything else from your childhood that has had an influence on you?
- What changes have you noticed in your height and weight over the past few years? How did you feel when these changes occurred?
- Is there any one thing that you would like to change most about your body right now?
- What? Why?
- Compared to your friends, would you say that you have grown about as fast as they have? Faster? Not as fast?
- Are there any advantages/disadvantages to growing up faster or slower than your friends?
- How would you describe yourself to someone who did not know you?
- What kind of person would you like to be?
- Do you participate in any athletics, clubs, or other activities? Tell me a little about them.
- Do you like the activities that you are in? Do you wish you were involved more? less?
- Is there a group of other girls/guys that you hang around with? How often do you see them? How long have you known them? What do you do together?
- What do you think is important in a friendship?
- Do you have any best friends? How would you describe them?
- Do you have a steady boy/girlfriend? How often do you date?
- How important do you think it is for parents to be strict with their teenager? Why?
- Do you think your parents are strict with you?
- How much say do you have in making rules and decisions in your home? Are you satisfied with this?
- Do your parents pressure you about your schoolwork? How do you feel about this?
- How much have your parents influenced your decisions about your future (college, career)? How do you feel about this?
- How is school going for you right now?
- What makes a good teacher? Can you describe one of your best teachers?
- If you could change your school, what would you do to change it?
- What would you like to do with your life? What do you reasonably see yourself doing in five years?
- Is there anything else that you would like to tell me about yourself?
I attached the powerpoint lesson that goes with the assignment, however, there still needs to be outside peer reviewed sources that back up the developmental theories.
TheChanging Life Course:
Adolescence
Human Behavior in the Social Environment II
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Adolescence
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=
6zrNxHhsfMs
Three Stages of Adolescence
Early: 11-14
Middle: 15-17
Late: 18-22
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Biopsychosocioal-spiritual Perspective
Biological Reality
Social Construction
The Rites of Passage…
Search for meaning and identity
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Hutchison, The Changing Life Course, 5e © 2015 SAGE Publications, Inc.
Risk and Protective Factors
Risk factors:
Use and abuse of alcohol and other drugs
Unsafe sex, teen pregnancy, teen parenting
School underachievement, failure, dropout
Delinquency, crime, violence
Poverty
Undernutrition
Marketing of unhealthy products and lifestyles
Protective factors:
Family creativity in coping with adversity
Good family relationships
Spirituality and religiosity
Social support in school setting
School-based health services
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Puberty
Girls begin puberty (9-17 years) about 2 years earlier than boys (11-16 years)
Setting the context and preparation for puberty and its physical changes
Consequences on multiple levels:
Biological
Psychological
Social
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The Developing Adolescent Brain
During adolescence there seems to be another period of overproduction of gray matter just prior to puberty, peaking at about 11 years of age for girls and 12 years for boys, followed by another round of pruning.
The frontal lobes are key players in the “executive functions” of planning, working memory, and impulse control, and the latest research indicates that they may not be fully developed until about age 25 (Blakemore & Robbins, 2012)
Cold cognition problem soving (adolescents is alone and calm) vs. hot cognition problem solving( adolescent is with peers, emotion based, impulsive).
The research indicates that in situations of cold cognition, adolescents or even preadolescents as young as 12 or 13 can reason and problem solve as well as or better than adults(Blakemore & Robbins, 2012).
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The Developing Adolescent Brain
“Higher order” brain centers, like the prefrontal cortex, not fully develop until young adulthood
Compared to adults, adolescents:
1. Less levels of maturity, responsibility, impulse control, and self-regulation
2. Less autonomous, more susceptible to peer pressure
3. Less capable of weighing potential consequences and considering future implications of behavior
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Adolescent Health
Nutrition, exercise, and sleep:
Few adolescents maintain a healthy nutritional balance during their time in adolescent flux.
Adolescents need to engage in at least 60 minutes of physical activity per day.
Shifts in circadian rhythms cause teens to be more alert late at night and to wake later in the morning.
Sleep deprivation has been linked to:
Poor food choices
Poor school performance
Changes in mood, aggressive behavior
Police-reported traffic collisions
Acne
Illness
Unsafe use of equipment
Substance use, including caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol
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Psychological Development in Adolescence
Cognitive Advances
Development in three main areas:
1. Improving reasoning skills – ability to consider a range of possibilities, to think hypothetically, and to engage in logical analysis
2. Abstract thinking – ability to imagine things not seen or experienced
3. Meta-cognition – ability to think about thinking
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Psychological Development in Adolescence
Piaget’s fourth stage, Formal Operational Thought – ability to use symbols to solve problems
Profound advancements in social cognition – processing, storing, and using of information about other people
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Cognitive Development and Personality
There are effects of adolescents’ thought in personality and behavior:
Idealism: What it may be like
Hypocrisy: Pretending to be what they are not
Pseudostupidity: Approaching problems at too much a complex level and failing
Egocentrism: Imaginary audience
Introspection; Spending a lot of time thinking themselves
Mind elevation Institute (2015)
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Adolescent Identity Development
Erikson: Identity vs. Role Confusion – finding my place in the world?
Many components:
Psychological (responses to physical changes)
Social (Develop relationships with many elements of the social environment)
Cultural (multicultural identities)
Gender – Sexual (Orientation and gender identity)
Spiritual (search for meaning)
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Lessons from Self Psychology
Heinz Kohut (1913-1981)
Self-object needs
Mirroring
Idealization
Twinship **
The need to be like others…
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Adolescent Identity Development
James Marcia – Identity Status Theory (expands on Erikson.)
He emphasized two aspects of identity development—the amount of exploration being done toward identity development and the amount of commitment to a particular identity:
4 Identity Statuses:
Identity foreclosure – commitment made without exploring alternatives
Identity diffusion – avoidance of exploration or commitment.
Identity moratorium – in the midst of identity crisis. Commitments absent or vaguely defined.
Identity achievement – identity exploration worked through and commitment made
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Adolescent Identity Development
Trying on identities…
Future orientation – cognitive skills of future orientation and construction of abstract thoughts
Role experimentation –sample membership in different cliques, build relationships with various mentors, take various academic electives, and join assorted groups and organizations
Exploration – refers to the to the comfort an adolescent has with trying new things
Self-evaluation – process of personal reflection and observation of oneself in relation to others
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Practice
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=
_N1RaJZV9Mc
Hutchison, The Changing Life Course, 5e © 2015 SAGE Publications, Inc.
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1 18
2 12th
3 mom is 43 dad 51
4 dad taxi driver mom nurse
5 2 sisters 3 brothers (not from same mom and dad)
6 parents split up at the age of 3
There was nothing he could do about it,
it wasn’t fair because everyone else had a family.
7. No, does not care
8. Moving around alot, lost count of how many times moved around, going from ny to nj, going to different schools.
9. You lost a lot of weight and was taller. It was cool being the tallest in the family. Felt better because I was more fit.
10. yes
11. The color of eyes, to light blue , because lighter eyes look better
12. faster , because I was the tallest in the class.
13. I was able to make the volleyball, friends did not have the height so they got cut from the tryouts.
14. Wanted to skip the question. Does not like to talk about himself.
15. Someone who helps others, help the community
16. Wrestling, volleyball, cross country, it was lit because I was very active with the school and very involved
17. Wish I was more involved earlier in your high school career.
18. Yes, the boys, play sports, soccer, video games, cod, see them every single day, 6 years known them
19. Loyalty, someone who has your back
20. Yes, two best friends, my ride or die homies, very loyal.
21. No, focused on sports
22. It is not important, strict parents make the teenager more likely to do something bad.
23. They were to a certain point, then she stopped caring junior year
24. There were no rules, no decisions
25. no , they did not care about the schoolwork. Doesn’t care that parents don’t care, it’s my education not theirs.
26. None, has no feelings
27amazing, honor student
Someone who cares about their students’ education who helps them succeed in their academic career.s.
28. Mr. S, teacher who helped you, motivated you, helped get good grades
29. Change the food, found a maggot in the food, food is trash
30. Become a cop, see myself working for the dea
31. No