BrainStorm

[rhcarr]

Tumblr Reflection

The Tumblr project has been an interesting one. Different from anything I have ever been asked to do. I appreciate the usefulness of the tool, but if my experience is anything to go by; I really did not have time to read many of other people’s posts, or really engage and interact with this tool as there were so many other pressing assignments, quizzes and readings to deal with, from this course and other courses.

Unlike other assignment guidelines, it is really difficult to tell how I did; if I posted the right things, if I had enough concentration on theoretical and course issues or if I included too much personal reflection and postulation. I always strive for A+, and this ambiguity has been trying at times.

I do think it was a valuable project – having to post three original posts per week kept me thinking of the different aspects of topics within adolescence and it had me surfing youtube and google for relevant and interesting information for links relating to Santrock. I definitely learnt a lot, and this is what we want, right!?

So all up, despite some bumps in the road in not knowing what to post and not knowing if I was doing the right thing all together, the project has been valuable. The reposts allowed me to interact with peers on a small level. Doing this more would have been fun, and valuable, though without the time available to really utilise the tool it was a lost component for me and a big ask to do once a week with 3rd year psychology assignments coming out of my ears.

It has been a long journey, and I will be happy to never frequent tumblr again as I prefer to spend my hours interacting with people and books rather than online components.

[rhcarr]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wnYhTeYGyF4

This is an interesting video.. follows on from what I expected to be my last blog post. Luke really highlights the stigmatization that comes with being a teenager and it is understandable that he wants to go out and 'live his life'. What is funny, is that when he begins to talk about work and how parents want and expect adolescents to get a job to get them off their computers ... that is part of it, but it's more than that, Luke. How do you expect to 'go and live your life' without the experience of interacting with people, working for someone, following rules and turning up for work every day? Part of school is learning to do that, and without first having some sort of job and experience - I say good luck with your world travel!

A perfect example of the personal fable and imaginary audience.

[rhcarr]

Reflection

 For my last required post, some reflection may be due. When I was a teenager, everyone thought I was older. I worked at a hair salon for 3 years and everyone would ask me – so what are your plans? At the time I was only 15, and people had judged me to be anywhere between 18 and 25. Because people seemed to tell me I was so mature, I always thought I knew best – better than all my friends and peers, I always thought I was responsible enough to drink, have sex .. whatever – the good olde personal fable.

Now that I have ‘grown up’, reflecting on these times and these issues (also in light of what this course has taught me) I was not prepared for any of these things. I may have been ‘ready’ or thought I was ready for these types of things, but in reality I was not, because I could not see the bigger picture, the wider consequences. Then again, isn’t hindsight a brilliant thing?

Family are essential in these decisions, even though adolescents may not want to admit it. I hold by the theme I have presented throughout my blog posting this semester, that parental and educational support in the domains of these risky behaviours; sex, drugs, alcohol etc.. can only prevent bad decisions or help in making the correct ones.

Family (communication), friends (positive support), education (constructive learning) and healthy exploration of identity (which includes sexuality) are to me, the main factors in adolescence and contribute the most to having a happy and healthy life. I honestly look forward to the day when I have my own adolescent to guide.

[1000drawings]

Self Portrait by Grant Snider

[nate552]

 This demonstrates the idea of being true to yourself, to present yourself in a positive light and be happy with who you are. During adolescence a key element of this is understanding who you are, with the ability to learn and develop.

[rhcarr]

This is just awesome in relation to life and specifically adolescent development. Identity, and learning how and what to present is an integral part in self-building and how you appear to others.

[rhcarr]

Imagine A World Where Being "Gay" The Norm & Being "Straight" Would Be The Minority! [Short Film]

If heterophobia was actually real www.loveisallyouneedthemovie.com "Teen bulling and teen suicide based on someone's sexual preference is ridiculous - and th...

Bullying in regard to sexual preference is ridiculous, and this film really puts it into perspective. This short film is a fantastic portrayal of what it is like for homosexuals and bisexuals in this life, in a way that heterosexuals can relate to and understand. I think this short film would actually really open up the eyes of many. Although there is more acceptance now than there ever has been for sexual minorities, there is still a vast majority that bully and intimidate. People should not have to hide how they feel. Especially in adolescence when sexuality is a central to understanding and appreciating people and relationships. A great watch. 

[peterpansneverland08]

This picture sums up my definition of adolescence perfectly. I spent my teenage years determined to grow up and once it happened I wanted so badly to go back to life without adult responsibilities.

[adolescents-of-today]

I could not agree any more with this photo. I have just entered adulthood but yet I wish that I can go back to my childhood

[rhcarr]

This is so interesting to me! It seems most people have this feeling, though I always wanted to grow up faster and have never looked back. Despite the stress of it all, being an adult brings so much more to life than it does as a child. As an adult I feel like I can have more of an impact on people. There are also so many more opportunities to do useful things and to be accepted into working environments where you will gain respect. Adolescence for me was a time of feeling inadequate as people often stereotype their lack of responsibility and usefulness. 

[rhcarr]

The Continuity View

"The continuity view emphasizes the role that early parent-child relationships play in constructing a basic way of relating to people throughout the lifespan" (Santrock, 2007, p. 275).

More than just early parent-child relationships, my adolescent relationship with my parents had a huge effect on my peer and romantic relationships. My mother, although we did not know at the time, was severely depressed. I believe that this was the reason why she did not have many friends, nor liked anyone coming around to our house. The house was her domain and nothing could take that away! We had a quiet, introverted family where we either sat together or were off studying or doing our own thing. I have not had many friends in my life, and I like it that way. Though I do put that down to what I was bought up to be comfortable with. I have nearly always had a close romantic partner, as my mum and dad were, and I have never felt the need for much else. Life is so busy, who has the time for friends when you take into account study, work, personal hobbies and love?! and of course house chores...

[rhcarr]

Birth Order

Birth order and how it effects us through life is something I find incredibly interesting. I am the youngest child of 2, my brother is 3 years older than me. I have been lucky, as we have always got on really well, only really fighting as young children without the moral abilities to understand or best guide our actions. My biggest issue through life as the youngest child was that I had less opportunity than my brother. My brother got to try swimming, running, rugby - anything the wanted. When it was my turn, I was taken to the same Karate club my brother attended - almost as if taking us to different places was too difficult. Now I still do karate, and I love it. Though it is interesting how parental opinions and maybe even 'favorites' can have an effect on who you want to be. My interests were shaped around what my brother did, which as a younger sister was not ideal. I wanted to be a ballerina!

I would love to study birth order more in-depth, and have even read excepts about how birth order can affect our adult relationships. Upon reflection, all of my boyfriends/partners have been youngest children, like me - maybe having that appreciation of the struggles of being the youngest, and not being domineering are qualities I look for!

[rhcarr]

Answer the questions below to find out what type of parenting style best describes you?

Parenting styles really affect the way your adolescent turns out (I believe). This link is interesting and the quiz makes it simple to see which type of parent you are. 

My parents were: "If you answered mostly As, you most likely use the rock (or authoritarian) parenting style. Your children aren't always given the chance to learn from their behaviour, they learn what keeps you happy and they can break rules as long as they don't get caught. Children of authoritarian parents can become difficult during the teenage years when they try to break out of the restrictions placed on them by their parents"

The reflection on authoritarian parenting is interesting, as I did in fact try to break to boundaries as a teen. Though at the same time, the way my parents used authoritarian parenting meant that there was a standard that I was expected to live up to at school that kept me from diverging too much from their expectations. I have a huge appreciation for how my parents worked together.

It must be impossibly difficult in divorced families for both the parents and the children, with different rules and expectations in each household. Depending on the individual, they have the ability to wreak havoc on parental relationships, or provide support and knowledge. My current partner has this exact problem, with his 15 year old totally taking advantage of the situation and playing on the good nature of both parents. It would be interesting to see what support or information networks are available for these types of issues.

[its-julie-s]

5 Steps for parents to deal with runaway teens

1

Leave the anger at the door. Do not make accusations and give your teen and yourself the chance to speak openly. You need to have a honest but fair conversation with them. Determine why they left. Do not yell at them, punish them or demand...

[rhcarr]

This is a really fascinating part of family life for many parents that I did not think of when considering family difficulties. Also, it is great to see that the first step is to leave anger at the door. My parents taught me very young that anger was a choice. You can be frustrated, but do not turn it into anger - anger solves nothing. My parents were never angry with me (only disappointed at times - what's worse?!) and it gave us the ability to communicate on a more adult - adult level, which gave me a lot of comfort.

[rhcarr]

Bronfenbrenner's ecological systems model is effective in understanding contributors in the family relationship. The family is made up of different systems and each individual has different friends, pass-times and hobbies that will influence their abilities, development and attitudes. Especially with the rise of technology it is becoming harder and harder for parents to find the time or ability to communicate with their adolescents.  I was distant from my family as an adolescent, and part of that problem was the lack of appreciation my parents had for the things I did outside school and the family home. Without knowing what I was doing, how could they relate to or understand how I was feeling? Family communication is key to having a sound home base to promote security and happiness.

[rhcarr]

morality

In human development studies, cognitive processes are at the forefront of studying morality - what our mind is capable of understanding from different points of view, or if the mind has the capacity to see the error in ones actions. What is not mentioned though, is the influence religion can have on morality. Although I am not religious myself, religion can have a big effect on keeping an adolescent 'on the rails', giving them an excuse, or ability through religion to say no to peer pressure. One of my old friends was a devout christian, and it actually saved her from confrontations about things she was not morally prepared to do. Religion, or at least the understanding of religion, can set a base of moral understanding.

[the-psychology-blog]

Do smart students smoke more pot?

[rhcarr]

This is interesting in relation to this weeks topic. Would an adolescents moral development cause them to choose to smoke or not smoke pot? Or is it more about upbringing? How interrelated are the two?

What types of reasons would people who smoke pot give as to why they do it? Or why it is okay? And what types of reasons would people who do not smoke give as to why they do not?

Speaking to people about this issue, often you will find those uncomfortable with it are uncomfortable solely because it is illegal. 

It seems when talking to adolescents that may of them are more open to marijuana, maybe because the population of people I have discussed the topic with are university students who may have seen stories and evidence which suggests the health benefits for people with epilepsy, for example.

It would be interesting to get honest answers from adolescent high school students and their opinions on drugs/alcohol and the moral and legal standpoints. 

[kjfletcher-jones]

If you can keep your head when all about you Are losing theirs and blaming it on you, If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you But make allowance for their doubting too, If you can wait and not be tired by waiting, Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies, Or being hated, don’t...

[rhcarr]

An awesome poem and description for moral development in adolescence. Words, especially when presented in such a way, by such a figure, can be very shaping to our beliefs and actions.

[rhcarr]

Although this video is about the influence of peers, it highly relates to this week’s topic of moral development.

The closing statement of the video was: "this effect of peers on reward sensitivity may also play a role in adolescents judgement and decision making when they are in potentially criminal situations". The moral development of adolescents is fascinating, and I remember times when I was learning to drive, where I would drive faster with others in the back. Now I've always thought I've had pretty good morals, but even I put those in my car in danger through responding to the pressure of having them there. What is more interesting though, is that moral development can be altered with nothing but the presence of another watching. 

Evident now more than ever due to the media and knowledge that it affects our thinking, is the understanding that we often act in ways that we think will create a favourable opinion of us from someone else. This is probably more likely in adolescence than in any other life stage due to the imaginary audience, personal fable and the feeling of invincibility that comes with both concepts.

We have to reflect on the affect the media really has on our expectations, our morals, our values and our thoughts of others. Something really has to change.

[rhcarr]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5czp9S4u26M

This is a cute and effective video representation of the Heinz Dilemma.

I find the Heinz Dilemma interesting, as it seems to be one of those problems that is fairly obviously as to what is the right answer. Because of the way that the problem is described it leads you to the justification in stealing the drug due to the way the businessman is portrayed as money hungry. 

Despite this thought, it does provide good examples and understanding of preconventional reasoning, conventional reasoning and postconventional reasoning.

[rhcarr]

5 Minutes Of What The Media Actually Does To Women

5 Minutes Of What The Media Actually Does To Women

Although I've already made 3 posts this week.... this video is a perfect example of how the media affects the body image and expected sexuality of females through adolescence. Great watch.