CAREER MANAGEMENTAdolescent RoadblocksObjective 1.02

KEY TERMSAdolescence: Adolescence describes the teenage years between 13 and 19 and can be considered the transitional stage from childhood to adulthood. 

Roadblocks: Something, such as a situation or condition, that prevents further progress toward an accomplishment.

SOURCES OF PRESSURE THAT AFFECT YOU--ROADBLOCKS IN PERSONAL LIFEPhysicalMentalEmotionalIntellectual

PHYSICAL Adolescents experience a tremendous amount of physical growth and development.

This rapid physical development begins during the prior developmental stage called Puberty and continues during adolescence.

Because the rate of physical development is so varied during adolescence, it often becomes a source of difficulty and discomfort for youth.

Some teens will develop more slowly than their peers. As a result, they may feel self-conscious about their bodies' lack of maturity, relative to their peers. 

They may even feel disappointed or resentful they are not receiving the same kind of attention their more physically mature friends seem to enjoy.

This can lead to feelings of frustration because their bodies aren't maturing as fast as they would like, or they may worry that something might be wrong with them.

PHYSICAL: GROWTH & HEIGHT During adolescence, most growth in height generally occurs during one,

single growth period, or "growth spurt." Girls normally start their growth spurt between the ages of 8 and 13 years, with the most rapid growth occurring between the ages of 10 and 13 years.

Girls reach their adult height between the ages of 10 and 16 years. Boys tend to begin their growth spurt a bit later than girls.

On average, guys start their growth spurt between the ages of 10 and 16 years, with the most rapid growth occurring between the ages of 12 and 15 years.

Boys reach their adult height between the ages of 13 and 17. Even though guys reach their adult height later than girls, young men grow to become taller than their female peers.

The average height of adult women is 5'5", and the average height of adult men is 5'10". Several factors can influence potential height such as genetics and nutrition, as do certain medical conditions and medications that interfere with digestion and appetite.

MENTAL Important mental health habits—including coping, resilience and good judgment

—help adolescents to achieve overall wellbeing and set the stage for positive mental health in adulthood. 

Although mood swings are common during adolescence, approximately one in five adolescents has a diagnosable mental disorder, such as depression and/or anxiety disorders.

"Resilient" adolescents are those who have managed to cope effectively, even in the face of stress and other difficult circumstances, and are poised to enter adulthood with a good chance of positive mental health. 

A number of factors promote resilience in adolescents—among the most important are caring relationships with adults and an easy-going disposition.

Adolescents themselves can use a number of strategies, including exercising regularly, to reduce stress and promote resilience.

Schools and communities are also recognizing the importance of resilience and general “emotional intelligence” in adolescents’ lives—a growing number of courses and community programs focus on adolescents’ social-emotional learning and coping skills.

EMOTIONAL Adolescents tend to shows strong feelings and intense emotions at different times. Their moods might seem unpredictable, and these emotional ups and downs can lead to

increased conflict. This is partly because an adolescent’s brain is still learning how to control and express

emotions in a grown-up way. Young people get better at reading and processing other people’s emotions as they get

older. This means you might be more sensitive to your emotions. But while an adolescent is developing these skills, they can sometimes misread facial

expressions or body language. Adolescents are likely to be more self-conscious, especially about his/her physical

appearance and changes. Adolescent self-esteem is often affected by appearance, or by how teenagers think they

look. As an adolescent develops, he/she might compare his/her body with those of his friends

and peers. Adolescents could also go through a ‘bulletproof’ stage of thinking and acting. Decision-making skills are still developing, and adolescents are still learning about the

consequences of their actions.

INTELLECTUAL Most boys and girls enter adolescence still perceiving the world around them in concrete terms: Things are either right or wrong, awesome or awful. They rarely set their sights beyond the present, which explains younger teens’ inability to consider the long-term consequences of their actions.

By late adolescence, many youngsters have come to appreciate subtleties of situations and ideas, and to project into the future. Their capacity to solve complex problems and to sense what others are thinking has sharpened considerably. But because they are still relatively inexperienced in life, even older teens apply these newfound skills erratically and therefore may act without thinking.

REFERENCES: All About Adolescence. (2014). Psychology Today. Retrieved September 8, 2014,

from http://www.psychologytoday.com/basics/adolescence Early Teens Development: In A Nutshell. (2011). Retrieved September 8, 2014,

from http://raisingchildren.net.au/articles/early_teens_development_nutshell.html Mental Health. (2014). Office of Adolescent Health. Retrieved September 8, 2014,

from http://www.hhs.gov/ash/oah/adolescent-health-topics/mental-health/home.html

Oswalt, A. (2005). Adolescent Physical Development. Retrieved September 8, 2014, from http://www.sevencounties.org/poc/view_doc.php?type=doc&id=41153&cn=1310

Roadblock. (2014). The Free Dictionary. Retrieved September 8, 2014, from http://www.thefreedictionary.com/roadblock

Stages of Adolescence. (2014). American Academy of Pediatrics. Retrieved September 8, 2014, from http://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/teen/Pages/Stages-of-Adolescence.aspx