Adolescent Faith Development, Article Critique Example

Introduction

Adolescent youth experience many different types of feelings and emotions when they spend time as patients, including fear and uncertainty, among others. These emotions require a strong sense of self and the willingness to listen to nurses regarding the circumstances to achieve a sense of relief and acceptance. Many adolescents do not necessarily understand or are unwilling to address their level of faith and spirituality; therefore, a discussion regarding these topics may be beneficial to patients. At this life stage, many adolescent youth are uncomfortable with the concepts associated with spirituality and faith and therefore, they tend to ignore them or minimize them as much as possible. From a nurse practitioner’s perspective, this provides an opportunity to enable adolescents in the role of patients to be receptive to discussions regarding faith and spirituality and to enable nurses to identify some of the issues that may impact these circumstances in different ways. Most importantly, personal beliefs and values must be integrated into this process as part of the discussion surrounding patient care and how it impacts adolescents, and whether or not their faith or spirituality will provide them with any support at this stage. The following discussion will address the different components of spirituality and faith and how they impact adolescent youth, particularly when they face a health crisis or serve as patients in another capacity that impacts their wellbeing. The nurse practitioner’s point of view will also be considered as a means of developing a framework for this group of patients, using theoretical perspectives as a guide in framing these discussions.

Analysis

For adolescents, there is a significant set of challenges that are introduced at this life stage, given the physical, emotional, mental, and psychological changes that are taking place (Haley, 2014). As a result, their development continues to evolve and grow, and they must be able to demonstrate strong coping skills and acceptance as these changes occur (Haley, 2014). However, their faith and spirituality is often the most critical aspect in their ability to accept change, and it represents an opportunity to examine how their core values, beliefs, and faith contribute to their level of acceptance and maturity at this stage (Haley, 2014). As adolescents continue to develop and grow in different ways, they require support and encouragement from those within their family and social circles in order to thrive, particularly as they gain a higher level of independence as time spent away from the home increases and decision-making becomes more complex than ever before (Haley, 2014). These experiences serve as the basis for Piaget and Erickson’s perspectives regarding development and how it translates into new thoughts, ideas, and perspectives, all of which contribute to increased maturity and greater self-confidence (Haley, 2014).

In accordance with physical, mental, and psychosocial development, there is also a significant growth in moral development, defined by Kohlberg as follows: “one’s expanding conception of the social world reflected in the understanding and resolution of conflicts that arise between self and others” (Haley, 2014, p. 4). Furthermore, adolescents begin to examine the differences between right and wrong more carefully and may require input from adults who are able to provide a different type of perspective regarding these decisions (Haley, 2014). During this stage, Fowler estimates that adolescents base their faith and spirituality on their own relationships, and the idea of “self-identity and personal meaning of faith” as a means of discovering more about themselves, including how they interact with others and how they develop goals and objectives, using their parents and other adults as a guide (Haley, 2014). According to the author, “Faith must make sense to the adolescent’s perspective of life, as he or she searches for meaning in daily life and hope for the future” (Haley, 2014, p. 4-5). This semblance of soul-searching and self-identity requires a leap of faith to some degree in order to capture an understanding of the different constructs that impact personal morals, beliefs, and judgments (Haley, 2014).

Once an adolescent recognizes his or her faith as a driving force in personal growth and development, it is possible to develop new ideas that support an understanding the extent of that faith and how it impacts his or her life in its current state. This practice requires a nurse practitioner to ask adolescent patients some important questions regarding faith and spirituality. These questions will enable adolescents to explore the depths of their own spirituality and faith in a more public way, and this may provide additional support and guidance in managing difficult challenges. Some of the questions that a nurse practitioner might consider asking an adolescent patient are as follows: 1) Do you believe in a higher power? 2) Do you believe that your spirituality is part of your daily existence? 3) Do you ever pray, and if so, under what circumstances? 4) What do you believe to be the single most important factor in any relationship? 5) Do you attend any type of church or other worship service? 6) If so, are these experiences helpful to you? 6) Do you believe that healing is a faith-based or spiritual concept?

These questions provide a basis for probing adolescents regarding some of their needs and how spirituality and faith align with them. From a nurse’s perspective, it is necessary to determine how to best approach adolescents in an effort to better understand their needs and how spirituality and faith might fulfill a void or a given purpose in their lives.

The relationship that evolves between a nurse practitioner and an adolescent patient is unique in that it represents two sides of the spectrum with respect to level of maturity and experience. This relationship, however, represents an opportunity to express different types of ideas associated with health that others are unfamiliar with, and therefore, it is likely that this relationship will support and aim to be effective in meeting the needs of adolescent patients as best as possible. The nature of adolescents as patients often contributes to a highly anxious or nervous state, particularly if they have had little exposure to these types of events. There may be many questions that adult patients might not ask or consider; therefore, these must be addressed by nurse practitioners as best as possible in order to shed light regarding these experiences. At this time, adolescents who rely upon their faith to get through difficult periods. Therefore, they must be able to understand the nature of their own belief system and how to best overcome the challenges of faith and spirituality during adolescence.

It is known that some adolescents require a significant level of support and guidance that goes beyond their parents, teachers, and other adults. In some cases, adolescents may feel more comfortable if they speak to individuals with whom they are unfamiliar, as this is likely to contribute to their ability to share ideas and to discuss their faith with professionals, such as nurse practitioners. As a result, the potential exists to acquire a new set of experiences that will have a positive impact on adolescent lives. For nurse practitioners on the other side of the discussion, adolescents have the opportunity to share information in a confidential manner that will enable them to better understand their lives at this stage and how to evaluate faith and spirituality in a different context in order to protect his or her feelings, emotions, and relationships with others. Adolescents must be able to embrace the support that they receive and to discuss the challenges of faith and spirituality and how they impact patients in different ways. It is important to identify the different constructs that are applicable to this premise and how they provide new opportunities for patients to share their stories and to be proactive in advancing their decision-making processes.

Conclusion

Adolescents face significant challenges that require a high degree of patience, understanding, and acceptance of many different experiences and encounters. Adolescents must be mindful of their own faith and spirituality and how it impacts their lives at this stage. Furthermore, they must be cognizant of how faith and spirituality may be beneficial if they face a health crisis or other issue. Nurse practitioners may play an important role in supporting adolescents on their spiritual journeys and in their efforts to better understand how to cope with health issues or other concerns that impact their wellbeing. Adolescent experiences often require adult input; therefore, it is important to recognize that faith and spirituality may serve as a driving force in understanding these experiences more effectively. From a nurse practitioner’s point of view, it is necessary to ask questions of adolescent patients that will capture a greater understanding of an adolescent patient’s faith and level of spirituality at this stage. Most importantly, nurse practitioners must be prepared to understand the different types of emotions that adolescents face, particularly as they face health challenges that could impact their wellbeing in different ways.

Application of Faith Integration and Evaluation of Experience

In the nursing practice environment, working with adolescent is a challenging yet highly rewarding process that requires attention and focus on his or her needs above all else. These practices provide an opportunity to communicate and to participate in relationships with nurses with the intent to better understand their approaches to decision-making, whether or not faith is part of the discussion. However, for many adolescents, it is very difficult to make changes that will have a positive impact on the life span because of confusion and frustration with personal circumstances. They might be unmotivated to move forward or to discuss other possibilities that will integrate faith and spirituality into the process. Therefore, as a nurse practitioner, it is important to identify areas where there might be conflicting emotions or feelings regarding faith and spirituality on the part of adolescents. This type of behavior may be viewed as a retreat and a refusal to share important insights with the nurse practitioner is less than favorable. However there are opportunities to examine these ideas and to use a personal approach in order to gain the trust of these patients over time.

From a personal perspective, I believe that there is a significant opportunity to engage the adolescent population when they struggle with understanding how to overcome challenges with dignity and self-respect. For adolescents, however, this introduces new methods of acceptance, along with questions regarding personal faith and spirituality and what it means to them. This discussion contributes to the overall direction of the adolescent’s life at a specific point in time and how this impacts his or her life significantly. There must be an approach in place that require us to ask questions in a manner that is consistent with faith-based principles and approaches to humanity. I believe that all adolescents deserve an opportunity to share their ideas and feelings regarding religion, particularly if they are in the patient care setting. This practice supports an understanding of the different needs of adolescents and how to address these needs in a thoughtful and sensitive manner. Adolescent patients must feel comfortable in sharing their ideas and in discussing personal matters regarding spirituality and faith with others, as this is an important step towards the discovery of new directions in promoting greater health and wellbeing. Adolescents must learn how to embrace these ideals and be able to share their ideas and to express themselves in situations where they might have otherwise not had this type of opportunity.

References

Haley, J.M. (2014). How do adolescents develop faith and how can nurses help? Journal of Christian Nursing, 31(2), 2-8.