"The only way to be totally free is through education" - Jose Marti

The relationship that an individual has with their family and with the people around them changes throughout their lifetime. The changes are particularly rapid and noticable during adolescence. Adolescents tend to spend less and less time with family members and more time with peers as they get older. According to McMahan and Thomas (2015), 86% of a North American teens waking hours are spent away from family members. Teens also become very selective in the types of information they are willing to discuss with family members and the type of information they would prefer to talk about with their peers.

 

Regardless of the time dedicated to family interactions, adolescents are still affected by and have an effect on a number of family systems composed of three subsystems: parents, parent-adolescent, and siblings.

 

The Parent-Parent Subsystem - The interactions that parents have with each other often affect the life of their developing adolescent. There are a number of normative changes that a parent may be going through at the same time that their adolescent is going through puberty, including biological changes, coming to terms with mortality, taking stalk of time, reaching a peak of social status, and questioning their established identity. The relationship that parents have with each other, be it good or bad, can also be reflected in the actions of thier adolescent.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

reactions others have to their siblings and how this impacts their reputation or expectations. In class we discussed five relationships that siblings have with each other: caregiver, buddy, critical, rival, and casual. Each of these relationships alters the way an adolescent might behave and approach other social interactions.

 

As adolescents become more involved in peer groups they also begin to stratify themselves into a number of social status categories: popular, rejected, neglected, controversial, and average. Interestingly, popularity is not a simply defined characteristic. While many adults would define popularity as individuals who are well-liked, kind, and socially successful, most adolescents see those who are popular as being socially dominant and may not necessarily be well liked or kind.

 

In class we discussed example students of concern, Dionte and Sara. Dionte has become disrespectful, aggressive, and tardy, while Sara has become outgoing but her grades are suffering. Further information acquired in class gave us more perspective on the different family system interactions which were affecting the students and their decisions.

 

Two systems I may want to gather information from when working with a student I am concerned about are:

 

1. The Parent-Adolescent Subsystem - Parents may unknowingly or intentionally place pressure on adolescents with the aim of assuring survival, social and economic success, and/or social values. In the class example for Dionte, his behaviour may have been affected by his parents putting pressure on him to reach the same high level of academic acheivement as his older brother. Similarly, in the case of Sara, her parents may be so focused on her sister's recent actions that she might not feel emotionally validated. Alternatively, her parents may be putting pressure on her not to follow the same path that her sister has and as such she may feel the need to act out in rebelion. At times parents are unaware that their good intentions might have unwanted consequences.

 

2. The Sibling Subsystem - Siblings can have a great deal of influence over each other either through direct encouragement and peer-pressure, through sibling observation and imitation, or though social pressure from another siblings reputation. In the class example for Sara, her behaviour may have been affected by her older sister being expelled for sexual activity on school property. Sara may be more socially involved because of the way others are viewing her in light of her older sister's actions, or she may feel pressured to be more socially outgoing in order to compete with the relative popularity of her older sister. In the case of Dionte, he may feel like he is living in the shadow of his older brother, or his brother may be holding his academic prowess over Dionte's head, making him feel like an underachiever. 

 

Additional Resources:

 

McMahan, I. & Thompson, S. (2015). Adolescence: Canadian Edition. Toronto: Pearson

 

Peer Pressure: Its Influence on Teens and Decision Making

 

Family and Peer Influences on Adolescent Behavior and Risk-Taking