As noted in the text, judgments about adolescents’ behaviors and attitudes tend toward polar stereotypes. On the one hand, adolescence is thought of as a time of idealism, of struggling for principles, and of seeking truth. On the other hand, adolescents are thought to be rebellious, emotional, selfish, and inconsiderate. Unfortunately, the latter viewpoint is the more prevalent.
Adelson believes that neither viewpoint is correct and points to his research which suggests that the political ideology of adolescents does not conform to any simple stereotype. He bluntly states that, because they lack cognitive maturity, very few adolescents up through high school have any consistent ideologies from which specific structured attitudes follow. Adolescents do not have the introspective-reflective power that many “idealists” attribute to adolescents.
In general, boys and girls highly valued peace, freedom, equality, honesty, love, and family security, whereas salvation, logicality, and imagination were devalued by both sexes. As far as general differences are concerned, family security rankings were similar for younger but not for older boys and girls. Older boys and girls agreed on equality and social recognition more than younger boys and girls did. It was suggested that all these rankings are influenced by current events and situations and, therefore, can change.
Your task is to answer the following question: Think back when you were a teenager (ages 13-17). What did you value when you were a teenager? What do you value now as an adult, how has your behavior and attitude changed over time? Compare and contrast the differences of your teenager self and your adult self in regards to values?
Expectations: 1-2 pages. Double spaced. Times New Roman, Size 12.
