Jim Liebelt's Youth Culture Watch

Seeds of Adult Dishonesty are Sown in Youth

People who cheated on exams in high school are considerably more likely to be dishonest later in life, according to a report by the Josephson Institute of Ethics.

The study, which surveyed nearly 7,000 people in various age groups nationwide, offers a sobering assessment of today's youth as cynics who are aware that their behavior crosses boundaries but believe it is necessary to succeed.

And the findings suggest that habits formed in childhood persist: Those who cheated in high school are more likely as adults to lie to a customer, inflate an insurance or expense claim, cheat on taxes and lie to their spouses.

"When you see that teens are five times more likely than adults to think it's OK to cheat to get ahead, we have a problem," said Rich Jarc, executive director of the Los Angeles-based institute. "Just think if five times the number of people in business, politics and banking hold those beliefs. That's alarming."

The institute issues biennial reports on the ethics of American high school students that have charted a steady increase in those admitting to cheating, lying and stealing. The new study is the first to connect teen behavior to dishonest activities in adulthood.

Among the findings: Teens 17 and younger are five times more likely than those older than 50 to believe that lying and cheating are necessary to succeed (51% vs. 10%), those in the 17 and younger group are nearly four times as likely to deceive their boss (31% vs. 8%) and three times more likely to keep change mistakenly given to them (49% vs. 15%).

More young adults ages 18 to 24 reported lying to a spouse or partner than did the 41- to 50-year-old members of their parents' generation (48% vs. 22%), more made an unauthorized copy of music or a video (69% vs. 27%) and they were more likely to have misrepresented or omitted a fact in a job interview (14% vs. 4%).

Source: Los Angeles Times
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-dishonest29-2009oct29,0,25349.story

Teen Brain: Adult Reasoning Capacity, Emotional Maturity Not So Much

If you have or have had teens at home or work with them, there is absolutely no surprise in this new study's finding that their emotional maturity development lags behind their reasoning capacity.

From a physiological standpoint, this study seeks to provide more understanding into the developing teen brain. From a practical standpoint, quite simply teens are "rookie" adults. They need time, guidance, and experiences to help them move toward maturity. It's worthwhile to note that teens are prone to experimentation and making some poor choices along the way.

Parents can mitigate some of the negative consequences by equipping teens with decision making skills including helping them learn to evaluate outcomes of different choices, and by providing loving support, appropriate discipline, along with lots of patience and grace.

A 16-year-old might be quite capable of making an informed decision about whether to end a pregnancy – a decision likely to be made after due consideration and consultation with an adult – but this same adolescent may not possess the maturity to be held to adult levels of responsibility if she commits a violent crime, according to new research into adolescent psychological development.

"Adolescents likely possess the necessary intellectual skills to make informed choices about terminating a pregnancy but may lack the social and emotional maturity to control impulses, resist peer pressure and fully appreciate the riskiness of dangerous decisions," said Laurence Steinberg, PhD, a professor of developmental psychology at Temple University and lead author of the study. "This immaturity mitigates their criminal responsibility."

Steinberg and his co-authors address this seeming contradiction in a study showing that cognitive and emotional abilities mature at different rates.

The findings appear in the October issue of American Psychologist, published by the American Psychological Association.

Source: ScienceDaily
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091007153745.htm

Kids Need More Than Sports for Positive Growth

If you want your children to flourish, get them involved in extracurricular activities other than sports, new research suggests.

Children in fifth, sixth and seventh grades who took part in both sports and after-school activities such as Boys & Girls Clubs, 4-H or Scouts had the highest scores for "positive development" and the lowest scores for risky and problem behavior, according to a study from Tufts University, published recently in Developmental Psychology.

"Positive development" includes measures of competence, confidence, character, connection and caring, the study authors explained.

About 60 percent of U.S. children participate in at least one sport, making sports the most common after-school activity, according to information in a news release from Tufts.

Although a large body of research suggests that sports participation is associated with psychological well-being, positive social development and higher academic and professional achievement, some research has shown that participation in sports may be linked to some risky behaviors.

The new study, which looked at data on 1,357 adolescents who took part in the 4-H Study of Positive Youth Development, found that those students who only took part in sports had lower scores on characteristics of "positive development" and higher scores on bullying, substance use and depression than students who also took part in youth development activities.

Source: U.S. News & World Report
http://health.usnews.com/articles/health/healthday/2009/09/02/kids-need-more-than-sports-for-positive-growth.html

Time Spent Online Important for Teen Development

Results from the most extensive U.S. study on teens and their use of digital media show that America's youth are developing important social and technical skills online - often in ways adults do not understand or value. The research was funded by the MacArthur Foundation and is the most extensive U.S. study of teens' use of digital media.

"It might surprise parents to learn that it is not a waste of time for their teens to hang out online," said Mizuko Ito, University of California, Irvine researcher and the report's lead author. "There are myths about kids spending time online - that it is dangerous or making them lazy. But we found that spending time online is essential for young people to pick up the social and technical skills they need to be competent citizens in the digital age."

Over three years, researchers interviewed over 800 young people and their parents, both one-on-one and in focus groups; spent over 5000 hours observing teens on sites such as MySpace, Facebook, YouTube, and other networked communities; and conducted diary studies to document how, and to what end, young people engage with digital media.

Significant findings include:
    --  There is a generation gap in how youth and adults view the value of
        online activity.
        --  Adults tend to be in the dark about what youth are doing online, and
            often view online activity as risky or an unproductive distraction.
        --  Youth understand the social value of online activity and are
            generally highly motivated to participate.

    --  Youth are navigating complex social and technical worlds by
        participating online.
        --  Young people are learning basic social and technical skills that
            they need to fully participate in contemporary society.
        --  The social worlds that youth are negotiating have new kinds of
            dynamics, as online socializing is permanent, public, involves
            managing elaborate networks of friends and acquaintances, and is
            always on.

Source: Marketwatch
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/New-Study-Shows-Time-Spent/story.aspx?guid=%7B56D27541-E5AD-43FC-8AE9-80A5C2C4EFFF%7D

Newt Gingrich Says: Let's End Adolescence

An interesting article by Newt Gingrich appears in Businessweek. In it, Gingrich says that it’s time to put an end to the social institution of adolescence. It’s a concept worthy of consideration and debate, but because Gingrich is a polarizing political figure, my hunch is that the message will be largely ignored due to the voice of the messenger.

Even if our society reached a consensus that adolescence should be ended, I’m not sure it could really be achieved. I don’t believe there exists a majority of parents today who want their kids to grow up faster, or take on adult responsibilities sooner. There’s nothing sinister to this. Today’s parents grew up within the social institution of adolescence and there’s nothing unusual about their desire to allow their own kids to have a similar experience.

Further, there are powerful economic forces at work. The “youth” market is a 200 billion-dollar annual behemoth. I can’t imagine that companies would willingly walk away from the youth cash cow.

But, the question is worth consideration: Is Gingrich right?

Has adolescence, at least in recent decades, been a transition time from childhood to adulthood? Or rather, has it served to simply prolong childhood? Just in the past week, I’ve posted two items that seem to indicate adolescence is more of the latter rather than the former.

First, there was a marketing report that promoted a redefinition of the “youth” market to include 25-34 year-olds. What was notable was marketers own definition of “youth”: "Contemporary youth should now be defined as 'the absence of functional and/or emotional maturity,' reflecting the fact that accepting traditional responsibilities such as mortgages, children and developing a strong sense of self-identity/perspective is occurring later and later in life." Is a culture that creates the climate where adolescent 34-year-olds exist, a good thing?

Secondly, there was a report on college-age students who feel a sense of entitlement on receiving high grades in return for modest effort including consistent attendance in classes and simply reading course texts. These students appear to consider educational institutions as service providers that exist to serve their roles as consumers.

To me, these items do indicate problems with the cultural phenomenon of prolonging adolescence and gives merit to at least giving due consideration to Gingrich’s call to end adolescence as we now know it.

It's time to declare the end of adolescence. As a social institution, it's been a failure. The proof is all around us: 19% of eighth graders, 36% of tenth graders, and 47% of twelfth graders say they have used illegal drugs, according to a study by the National Institute on Drug Abuse and the University of Michigan. One of every four girls has a sexually transmitted disease, suggests a recent study for the Centers for Disease Control. A methamphetamine epidemic among the young is destroying lives, families, and communities. And American students are learning at a frighteningly slower rate than Chinese and Indian students.

The solution is dramatic and unavoidable: We have to end adolescence as a social experiment. We tried it. It failed. It's time to move on. Returning to an earlier, more successful model of children rapidly assuming the roles and responsibilities of adults would yield enormous benefit to society.

Prior to the 19th century, it's fair to say that adolescence did not exist. Instead, there was virtually universal acceptance that puberty marked the transition from childhood to young adulthood. Whether with the Bar Mitzvah and Bat Mitzvah ceremony of the Jewish faith or confirmation in the Catholic Church or any hundreds of rites of passage in societies around the planet, it was understood you were either a child or a young adult.

Adolescence was invented in the 19th century to enable middle-class families to keep their children out of sweatshops. But it has degenerated into a process of enforced boredom and age segregation that has produced one of the most destructive social arrangements in human history: consigning 13-year-old males to learning from 15-year-old males.

It's time to change this—to shift to serious work, learning, and responsibility at age 13 instead of age 30. In other words, replace adolescence with young adulthood.

Source: BusinessWeek
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/08_45/b4107085289974.htm?chan=magazine+channel_opinion%20

"Youth" Now Extends to 25-34 Year-Olds?

I've posted before on this blog about the trend of an extended period of adolescence in our culture. Now, according to a recent study by Viacom Brand Solutions International comes a conclusion that the 25-34 years-old demographic ought to be included as part of the "youth" market. Particularly noteworthy in the study was their definition of "youth": "Contemporary youth should now be defined as 'the absence of functional and/or emotional maturity.'" As such, I'm still concerned, and wondering about what the results of delaying the process of taking on adult responsibilities and attitudes will be. What do you think?

The traditional demographic definition of "youth" is no longer applicable in today's society, and marketers should target consumers based upon their engagement and participation in youth culture rather than by chronological age, according to the "Golden Age of Youth" study from Viacom Brand Solutions International (VBSI), writes MarketingCharts.

As people worldwide delay the onset of adult responsibilities and stay emotionally and physically younger for longer, it is becoming more acceptable for older people to participate in youthful pursuits. To support this trend, marketers should routinely consider the often-overlooked 25-34 age group a part of the youth market, VBSI said.

"Contemporary youth should now be defined as 'the absence of functional and/or emotional maturity,' reflecting the fact that accepting traditional responsibilities such as mortgages, children and developing a strong sense of self-identity/perspective is occurring later and later in life," the study said.

Indeed, 52% of all 25-34 year-olds agree they still have "a lot of growing up to do," and this sentiment is highest in Asian (78%) and Latin American (66%) markets.

Source: Marketing Vox
http://www.marketingvox.com/youth-no-longer-defined-by-age-consumers-stay-younger-longer-041658/

Study: Teen Girls Need to Keep Exercising

Girls often become much less physically active during their teen years, but that's just when they should move into high gear if they want to control their weight, a new study reveals.

Scientists at Harvard Medical School in Boston analyzed national data on 3,914 females, ages 14 to 22. Information on the young women was gathered in 2001-2000 and again in 2003 and 2005. Some of the younger girls were gaining weight because they were still growing and maturing. However, most of the older girls had reached their full maturity and their weight gain was more likely to be unhealthy.

About half reported exercising at least once a week, and 14% said they exercised five or more times a week. The length of time and intensity of the activity varied dramatically, including doing short bouts of toning exercises, playing soccer, dancing, jogging. Among the findings, presented here at the annual meeting of the Obesity Society, an organization of weight-loss researchers and professionals:

•The young women gained an average of seven pounds between 2001 and 2005.

•The young women who exercised the most — five or more days a week — and limited their portion sizes gained about three pounds over four years compared to the seven-pound average.

•Those who exercised at least once a week and either ate a low-fat diet or limited their portion sizes gained about 5½ pounds.

Unfortunately, many girls tend to cut back on activity during puberty because they may not want to sweat or have their hair messed up in front of boys, and this is the worst possible time for young women to stop being active, says Alison E. Field, associate professor of pediatrics at Harvard Medical School and Children's Hospital, Boston.

Source: USA Today
http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/weightloss/2008-10-07-girls-teen-active_N.htm

Now, the Bad News on Teenage Marriage

While the Bristol Palin (teen) pregnancy was thrust into the headlines recently, the notion that she intends to marry her boyfriend (and the baby's father) was given little ink. The New York Times ran an article recently that covers the issue of teen marriage and how that statistics show these marriages face significant challenges in surviving. Of particular note, however, is the notion that pregnant teens who marry, do better than being a single parent.

Bristol Palin's impending nuptials to Levi Johnston (no date has been given) did not stir up nearly the same hullabaloo as the revelation of her pregnancy, on the eve of the Republican convention. But it is teenage marriage today, not teenage pregnancy, that is the rarity. And, statistics show, teenage marriages tend not to endure.

The median marrying age for women in the late 1950s was about 19, according to David Popenoe, co-director of the National Marriage Project at Rutgers University and an emeritus professor of sociology there. But a marriage between 19-year-olds — or even 17- or 18-year-olds — then would not have been described as a “teenage marriage,” he said. It was too routine to be given a special label.

Studies show that today teenage marriages are two to three times more likely to end in divorce than are marriages between people 25 years of age and older. The most comprehensive study on marriage and age that sociologists cite was published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 2001, from 1995 data, and it found that 48 percent of those who marry before 18 are likely to divorce within 10 years, compared with 24 percent of those who marry after age 25.

“Most young women don’t fare very well when it comes to raising a family as a teenager, and those precious few who get married, the marriages are very short-lived,” said Bill Albert, chief program officer for the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy. “I know and respect a lot of 17-year-olds, but I don’t think any of them are ready to be married and begin the lifelong task of raising a child.”

Sociologists say that what drives the failure of teenage marriages — and some also say the postwar young marriage boom may have contributed to the divorce explosion of the 1970s — is the complex condition of being an unformed adult.

“They may not know quite what they want in a lifetime partner,” Dr. Popenoe said. “They still often have years of education to complete, as well as getting settled in the work world, and those two things may change their outlook on life considerably.”

But even those who acknowledge that teenage marriage is a risky proposition say it is a healthier choice for a mother and her childhood than single parenthood, even at 17.

Source: New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/04/fashion/04marriage.html?

In Summer, Obesity Rules

It is the paradox of summertime: The very months blessed with the greatest opportunity for running and jumping and playing have instead become prime time for packing on pounds. Once the plight of adults, obesity has become alarmingly common among the young, with children under 10 even being prescribed cholesterol-lowering pills. And specialists who treat overweight children say that the summer months are emerging as a leading suspect in the epidemic of childhood obesity.

Blame it on too much time in front of screens - computers, TV, and handheld-devices - and too little routine. Without the constancy of school and, even, the bland predictability of school lunches, summer looms as three months of unending temptation, fueled by advertising promoting sugar-laden snacks.

"You would think the summer would be a time when kids are really active and running around," said Julie Vanier, coordinator of Boston Medical Center's FANtastic Kids, the fitness and nutrition program that teaches about the importance of a good diet and exercise. "For many kids, it's the opposite. They have a lot of down time in the summer that they're trying to fill."

Source: Boston Globe
http://www.boston.com/lifestyle/articles/2008/08/12/in_summer_obesity_rules/

Adolescents' TV Watching Is Linked to Violent Behavior

Adolescents who watch more than one hour of television a day are more likely to commit aggressive and violent acts as adults, according to a 17-year study reported in the journal Science.

The study, which tracked more than 700 adolescents into adulthood, found that young people watching one to three hours of television daily were almost four times more likely to commit violent and aggressive acts later in life than those who watched less than an hour of TV a day.

Girls as well as boys exhibited increased aggression, according to the study, which was hailed by psychologists and social scientists as more evidence of TV's harmful effects.

"It's a very important study and has a great deal of credibility--it very niftily isolates television as a causal factor," said George Comstock, a researcher on media violence at Syracuse University in New York.

It is also the first study, Comstock said, to clearly link TV viewing among adolescents to later, adult violence.

Source: Los Angeles Times
http://www.latimes.com/features/health/la-hew-kidviolence2002,0,2251451.story

An important study here! Many have suggested this link in the past, but it's nice that researchers have done the hard work of being patient over 17-years in order to complete this study. It might not be the last word on the issue (I'm sure it won't be!) but parents have greater reason now to place limits on amount of television screen time they permit their children to consume. (Of course, it will also be important to understand that kids are watching less television these days and are consuming more of their video via the Internet and downloads. I may seem obvious, but I want to caution parents that it's not the television medium that leads to the aggressive and violent behaviors in later life, but the content of what adolescents watch.)