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Friday, 30 May 2008
Change in the adolescent stage of development
Three generations ago some adolescents finished their schooling by age 12 or 13 and then went to work shortly after. They could then be married and starting a family anytime after age 16 and were maintaining themselves economically by age 18 or younger. Nowadays this is far less common.
In this day people turn adolescent around 11 (females) and 12 (males). Girls on average mature 2 years earlier than boys who do not catch up until the last years of adolescence. Adolescence can finish around 18 to 25 years of age, where they become economically and psychologically independent with a regular job and the establishment of a family of their own.
Once upon a time (30 to 40 years ago)
Nowadays
So why has this change occurred?. There seems to be a number of reasons for this.
* First, as a general rule the more educated a society is the longer adolescence will be. If one is receiving schooling then one is not working. If one is not working then one does not have economic independence which is a key feature in finishing adolescence - no longer being financially dependent on others, usually the parents.
Many in the western world do some form of post school education. This means, that if one studies full time they will not be in a position to earn a full income until they are about 22 to 24 years of age. To do this one would have essentially have been at full time ‘school’ from age 6 to age 24. No time to gain realistic financial independence and no time to have been out in the work force and dealing with life that did not involve full time education. Such a person at age 24 will be financially dependent and lack any significant life experience in the work force world. So for these people it could be argued that adolescence is not going to begin to end until the age of 24.
* Marriage is tending to occur later. One does not hear much about weddings occurring with 18 and 19 year olds as they did not so long ago. So in this way people do not have to be ‘grown up’ so early.
* Related to this is child birth occurring later and numbers of children is reducing. This allows people to be more irresponsible in this sense, all they have to do is look after self and not a child.
* As a society we tolerate this period called adolescence more so than in the past. In the city where I live every year there is a week or fortnight called ‘schoolies week’. This is where those who have just completed high school (17/18 year olds) go on vacation as soon as their last examinations end. On this vacation they drink too much alcohol, take drugs and engage in gratuitous sex. Whilst I am sure there are many who do not do such things, this is what is highlighted in the press year in and year out. In general it is tolerated by society and even viewed with amusement by some.
Not only do we as a society tolerate the adolescent but we go as far as to tolerate somewhat deviant and anti-social adolescent behaviour. We let them be this without trying to force them into being adults with the appropriate behaviour at an early age.
* As some societies becomes more affluent they do not need the group of ‘adolescents’ to be working so as to maintain a functioning society. Hence such societies are in a position to be come more educated, and governments like in Australia certainly have policies that promote a more educated society.
Another consequence of some societies becoming richer is that its focus changes. There is less attention on meeting the basic survival needs of food and shelter. This can result in more attention turning to the introspection of ourselves (more self actualising). One of these things can be more of a focus on psychology and human development. More time and money allows a society to do more navel gazing. So the humanities increase in influence and we have psychologists and others being more vocal and influencing thinking in society and in government policy making. So we become more understanding of the adolescent stage of development because it is being studied more and talked about more.
* Life span increases. Over that past 50 to 70 years the average life span has increased by about 20 years. So in this sense there is less of a need to hurry through the developmental stages. As people can now be adults for longer they can then proceed through adolescence at a slower rate.
So it would seem that changes like these in some societies over the past 50 years has resulted in the stage called adolescence becoming longer and longer. Not so much starting all that much earlier but taking much longer to complete.
Graffiti
17:39 Permalink | Comments (9) | Email this
Comments
'Failier to Launch'
It's a movie. Quite funny really but it revealed a lot - not just about our adult aged adolescents but about the families they grew up in and the amount of growing that every individual in the family must face.
I agree with you. Its a strange plan we have for our future generations. Longer life? I prefer quality thanks. I've seen some of the 'quantity' and 'quality' wins hands down.
It's nice to hear you talking this Friday night. I'm off to the land of Nod where i hope to dream really lovely dreams and remember them. I hope you do to. G'night Mr Graffiti Sir.
roses
Posted by: roses | Friday, 30 May 2008
Is the end of adolescence defined as the movement into responsibility then of adulthood ... job, house ownership, steady relationships?
Never thought of the defining point. Somehow I defined it by homones settling!
Does the fact that we over protect our children more lead to prolonged adolescence too?
Posted by: Kahless | Saturday, 31 May 2008
I think thirty years of age is the consolidation of the maturation phase. 40 years ago they didn't appreciate that the hypocampus part of the brain was fully formed after 24 years of age. It was convenient for a teenager to leave home and fend for themselves in the big world thats the way it was however perhaps an unrealistic psychological perspective back then. The stages that were defined as such must have been established in the terms of social observation. Theferore there must be another component involved in establishing the chronological developmental shifts. It would seem to be a built in- flexible, shifting factor which relates the human environment.
Sort of like changing the goal posts to help reframe the context of our globally changing reality. It makes things normal for us folk. Its like fudging the statistics to represent a truth more fitting.
Thats my philosophical cup of tea this morning
kenoath
Posted by: kenoath | Saturday, 31 May 2008
That is a good point Kahless,
Over protection and the nanny state that most western societies are these days perhaps
Tony
Posted by: Tony | Saturday, 31 May 2008
That is a good 'cuppa' to start the day Kenoath.
So adolescence ends at 30 Kenoath?
Maybe we as a society will get there one day.
At 18 I was outta there!
Moved into a house with 3 other mates. It became a party house and all sorts of shinanigans were done there
Graffiti
Posted by: Graffiti | Saturday, 31 May 2008
I am saying that the consolidation of maturation happens at 30 Grafitti. I moved out of home at 18 years too Grafitti. I like the word "Shinanigans" its a good word that covers a wide range of activities.
I don't think my teenage stage was over until about 24 years of age, I was a late developer. At about 28 to 30 years of age there seems to be a final acceptance of responsibility which tests the finality of teenage years. That is, a person may start a family, give up drugs or booze, get married or divorced etc in contrast to continuing certain behaviours instigated in teenage years.
I believe maturation has much to do with someones environment, role models and friends; there are some inbetween grounds where all is not clear between teenage and maturation. Perhaps I am not getting that rabid and concentrated chaotic time that teengae years produce. Is one supposed to be an adult immediately after tthat?
kenoath
Posted by: kenoath | Saturday, 31 May 2008
I think you are right Kenoath,
It is a blurr, a blend and gradual morph for the teen to adult.
Would be good if it wasn't. Have schoolies week as the rite of passage from teen to adult?
maybe
Graffiti
Posted by: Graffiti | Saturday, 31 May 2008
I think I was 25 when I first called myself a "woman" rather than a "girl", and started going out with "men" rather than "boys". I remember a sense of "Oh, I am a woman!" type light bulb moment.
Posted by: Madeleine | Saturday, 31 May 2008
No one gets to practice any stage of life. We just are. I think i was born a woman human, who is often what we like to call "a little girl". I have seen children men and women who raise their siblings because no one else will and they're not always the elder ones either. They parent their parents and run a home better than most as well as have a part time job and go to school every day.
I don't understand why we need always to put gates and barriers up to measure what stage we're up to. Does it help anyone at all? Can it make a difference to peoples lives/situations in life?
roses
Posted by: roses | Sunday, 01 June 2008