Puberty is a significant period in a boy or girl’s life as they begin to undergo sexual maturation and begin the transition from children to adults. The hormones cause visible physical changes to the body which are accompanied by new strong emotions. These changes can generally be expected between the ages of eight and sixteen. This paper will explore the psychosocial effects experienced during this adolescent stage and also look at the important role of parents.
The strange and new experiences that children experience during puberty can make them take on a completely different personality. The changes that they are going through can result in feelings of anger, confusion which can manifest in the form of rebellion, lashing out and isolation. Adolescents undergo cognitive changes like developing more progressive reasoning skills which allows them to think hypothetically and arrive at decisions in a logical manner. They also become more abstract thinkers which open up their imagination. They are now capable of experiencing love and grasp spirituality. Adolescents also develop meta-cognition which guides a lot of their decisions. This is the awareness and understanding of one’s own thought process (( Steinberg, 2016). Parents should be patient with adolescents as they go through this roller coaster period of emotions. The children may push them away but they need to be understanding and continue to provide support until they mature as adults. Research has shown that some of the ways that can help encourage cognitive growth include encouraging them to share their ideas and thoughts, encouraging them to have independent thoughts, including them in discussions, helping them set goals, complimenting them for good decisions and providing constructive criticism when they make poor decisions ( Steinberg, 2016). One parenting-style that has been shown to give positive adolescent outcomes is the authoritative form of parenting. Children from these families usually have high self esteem, low depression levels and most committed to school. Another style is the authoritarian method where emphasis is on obedience and conformity without much explanation by the parents about the reason for the rules or decisions. This style is highly demanding but has low response ( Steinberg, 2016).
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Adolescents from these families tend to have poor social skills, low esteem and suffer depression. We also have the permissive parenting style where parents do not set rules, do not control or set behavioral expectations ( Steinberg, 2016). Children from these families are mostly associated with drug and substance abuse and suffer from low self esteem. The most negative parenting style is the uninvolved parenting style where there is almost no supervision. Adolescents from these families are mostly involved in delinquent behavior and commit many vices.
References
Steinberg, L. D. (2016). Adolescence. McGraw-Hill Humanities, 11th Ed, 2016 ISBN-10: 1259822885 ISBN-13: 978-1259822889
