Early Adolescent Development, Research Paper Example

Abstract

The teenage years are some of the most influential and obscure years in the human life cycle.  My son, Gavin, has begun to engage in many developmental behaviors that are direct results of genetics, hormones and cognitive changes.  He has shown moral awareness and at the same time can engage in destructive behaviors and poor decision-making.  His father and I continue to work with him daily on assisting him with developing into an honorable young man.  The physical development he experiences has led to increased hormonal activity and a strong trend of self-conscious behaviors.

Introduction

Within the early teenage years, there is consistent and sometimes drastic development changes for children.  This continues to grow and enhance in the daily actions of children as they grow older into their middle teenage years.  For my son Gavin, he has shown very consistent performance in the classroom and has even taken up many extracurricular activities besides music.  However, Gavin is beginning to show signs of sarcastic behavior and slight rebelliousness, which many children his age continue to go through.  Our family has seen many different changes in our formation and our location over these years and these environmental adjustments have also likely led to many of Gavin’s changes and developments.  Overall, he continues to show strong behavioral changes and has developed many strong moral beliefs that drive his daily activities and thoughts.

Perhaps one of the biggest signs of his cognitive change comes from his behaviors when he interacts with others.  Normally, Gavin is very well intentioned and communicates very well, but there are times where he becomes defensive and due to stressful situations he lashes out or shuts down completely.  This continues with the fight-or-flight response we have a problem with in his early pre-teen years.  When Gavin is upset from a bad day at school, he will usually throw down his book bag and escape to his room to play video games by himself.  During these tantrums, Gavin is very difficult to speak with and no matter what rationale I use to speak with him, he will often lash out at me and push me away as a defense mechanism to avoid dealing with the issues.

My son has continued to show very strong skills and cognitive abilities in the areas of mathematics and science.  He has just qualified to take all AP courses in his senior year of high school and has been preparing very well for the ACT and SAT exams.  During his younger years, he used to struggle with writing, but has really taken a strong interest in writing poetry and stories.  In fact, I have begun to enjoy reading his stories each time he is able to write another.  I continue to support him in these areas as well as his musical interests.  He has always excelled in music and has actually started a new rock band to make use of his song writing and singing ability.  Gavin has even taught himself to play the guitar, which is his third instrument.  I would not be surprised if he continues to use his musical or mathematical skills for a potential career.  Engineering may be a useful career for him to make use of his strong mathematical abilities, but he has also continued to show interest in music.

Although I have done my best to raise Gavin with my own beliefs, there are several factors that have influenced his development outside of my control.  For instance, Gavin’s genetics and hormones have recently triggered a strong sexual interest in girls.  His father and I have had to discuss sex with him on several occasions to make sure he makes the best decision and engages in safe practices.  His friends also play a major role in influencing his development.  Gavin continues to want people to like him and his behaviors tailor to this desire forcing him to engage in poor decision-making such as underage drinking and being around individuals smoking marijuana.  These behaviors are very detrimental to his development, but they are out of my control.  I have learned to express my concerns openly with Gavin and trust him to make the best decisions possible while keeping strict rules and responsibilities.  However, his desire to be accepted has led him to other positive outcomes such as joining the baseball team.  Gavin emphatically enjoys baseball and being around his friends in this manner.

References

Ainsworth, M.D.S. & Bowlby, J. (1991). An ethological approach to personality development’. American Psychologist, 46, 331-341.

Cowie, H., Blades, M. & Smith, K. (2005).  Basic psychology: Understanding Children’s Development. Oxford: Blackwell Press

Feiler, R. (2009). Stages of Growth Child Development – Early Childhood and Middle Childhood. Retrieved on February 21, 2010 from http://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/1826/Child-Development-Stages-Growth.html

Meadows, S. (1987). Piagets contribution to understanding cognitive development: an assessment for the late 1980s. Retrieved on February 21, 2010 from http://psychology.about.com/od/loveandattraction/ss/attachmentstyle.htm