Question

1.) What are some of the challenges facing teens? Describe each

2.) According to Erikson, what are the tasks for early, middle, and late adulthood? Describe each stage

3.) What are the two general dimensions of parenting? And, what are the four parenting styles they produce? Which is thought to be the best style, and why?

Answer 1

1. Many challenges which face teens are- exploring the identity of self, dealing with the pubertal changes, being accepted by the significant others, facing the peer pressure, risk taking behavior, dealing with stress and pressures etc. The biggest challenge for any teen is to have a sense of identity, identifying the attributes they have, their potential, abilities, capabilities and their true self. Getting an answer of Who Am I? When being faced with dilemmas, teens have to strike a balance between two conflicts, like following what parents are saying and what peers are asking for? In such a scenario, teens find it difficult to handle the stress that is thus created.

2. Erikson gave eight stages of human life span development. Each is characterized by a virtue, if successfully completed. These eight stages are trust vs. mistrust (0 to 2 years), autonomy vs. shame and doubt (2 to 4 yaers), initiative vs. guilt (4 to 5 years), industry vs. inferiority (5 to 12 years), identity vs. role confusion (13 to 19 years), intimacy vs. isolation (20 to 39 years), generativity vs. stagnation (40 to 64 years), integrity vs. despair (65 till death). This means that intimacy vs. isolation and generativity vs. stagnation correspond to early, middle and late adulthood, respectively.

People in early adulthood are concerned with intimacy vs. isolation. After we have developed a sense of self in adolescence, we are ready to share our life with others. However, if other stages have not been successfully resolved, young adults may have trouble developing and maintaining successful relationships with others. Erikson said that we must have a strong sense of self before we can develop successful intimate relationships.

When people reach their 40s, they enter the time known as middle adulthood, which extends to the mid-60s. The social task of middle adulthood is generativity vs. stagnation. Generativity involves finding your life’s work and contributing to the development of others through activities such as volunteering, mentoring, and raising children. During this stage, middle-aged adults begin contributing to the next generation, often through childbirth and caring for others; they also engage in meaningful and productive work which contributes positively to society.

3. According to Diana Baumrind, the parental behaviors may be thought of as belonging to two continua- parental warmth and responsiveness as well as parental control. Based on these two dimensions four types of parental styles emerge- authoritative, authoritarian, permissive and uninvolved.

Authoritative parenting style is comprised of high parental warmth as well as high parental control. If rules are set by parents then the reason for the rules is also told to children. Children are in direct supervision of their parents yet they receive love, care and a feeling of belongingness from their parents.

Authoritarian parenting styles has a lack of parental warmth but the control is high. Rules are set and children are made to follow them. They cannot question or argue with their parents.

Permissive parents lack control over their children but garner love and affection over them.

Uninvolved parents lack both warmth and control. They remain uninvolved with their children.

The bets type of parenting style is found to be authoritative. Children reared through this parenting style have been found to have high self-esteem and self-efficacy. They turn up to be individuals who are emotionally mature and responsive towards the needs of others.