Jim Liebelt's Youth Culture Watch

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.)

Family Fun Reduces Risky Teen Sex, Boston College Study Finds

Teens are less likely to engage in risky sex if families spend more time at the dinner table and "having fun", researchers say.

The detailed US study of nearly 5000 teenagers found parents who do not want their teens to engage in dicey sexual behavior should make family time a priority.

Adolescents who took part in family activities more often had sex less frequently, less unprotected sex, and fewer sexual partners, Boston College researcher Rebekah Levine Coley and colleagues found.

Dr Coley’s investigation reported in the August issue of the Journal of Adolescent Health also found overbearing parents were more likely to trigger early and risky sex in their children.

On the other hand, teens who frequently ate dinner with their family, did “something religious" or had family fun were less likely to go astray.

Family activities were "centrally important supports for children, providing opportunities for emotional warmth, communication, and transmission of values and beliefs”, the study authors found.

Source: Heraldsun.com.au
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,24069614-661,00.html

Regular family dinnertime, family fun, and family spiritual activities to reduce at-risk behaviors... This is what we at HomeWord have been advocating to parents over the years. It's nice to have some current research to back up these notions!

There's A Gender Gap At The Dinner Table

For adolescent girls, the positive impact of sharing regular family meals appears to last throughout their teenage years. Those who ate with their families at least five times a week during middle school were much less likely to drink, smoke or use marijuana five years later, researchers at the University of Minnesota found in a study published recently.

But the same was not true for boys. For reasons that the researchers could not explain, regular family meals had no influence on their later substance abuse.

The research is the latest in a series of studies that may be helping to revive the family dinner hour in the United States. Researchers at the university and elsewhere have proven the power of regular family meals to protect kids from unhealthy behavior -- everything from eating disorders to addiction and suicidal thinking. Some previous studies also have shown that the impact is much greater on girls than boys.

Source: Minneapolis - St. Paul Star Tribune
http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/health/25741649.html?location_refer=Homepage:highlightModules:3

Survey: Teens Dating Younger, Experiencing More Violence in Relationships

A troubling new survey reveals that teens (even "tweens") are dating earlier, and are experiencing emotional and sexual abuse in their relationships. Here's one disturbing finding: 37% of 11-12 year-olds say they have had a boyfriend or girlfriend. Yikes!

Tweens and teens in dating relationships are experiencing significant levels of various forms of abuse, many don't know the warning signs of an abusive relationship, and many parents don't know what's going on in those relationships, a new survey says.

Among the findings:

69 percent of all teens who had sex by age 14 said they have gone through one or more types of abuse in a relationship.

40 percent of the youngest tweens, those between the ages of 11 and 12, report that their friends are victims of verbal abuse in relationships, and nearly one-in-ten (9 percent) say their friends have had sex.

Nearly three-in-four tweens (72 percent) say boyfriend/girlfriend relationships usually begin at age 14 or younger.

More than one-in-three 11-12 year olds (37percent) say they have been in a boyfriend/girlfriend relationship.

One-in-five between the ages of 13 and 14 say their friends are victims of dating violence, such as getting struck, hit or slapped by a boyfriend or girlfriend, and nearly half of all tweens in relationships say they know friends who are verbally abused.

One-in-five 13-14 year olds in relationships (20 percent) say they know friends and peers who've been struck in anger (kicked, hit, slapped, or punched) by a boyfriend or girlfriend.

In addition, significant numbers of teens (15-18) are experiencing emotional and mental abuse as well as violence when dating; it's even more prevalent among teens who've had sex by 14.

The survey, which was commissioned by Liz Claiborne Inc. and loveisrespect.org, was conducted by Teenage Research Unlimited. Loveisrespect.org operates the National Teen Dating Abuse Helpline.

Source: CBS News
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/07/08/earlyshow/living/relationships/main4240192.shtml

Teen Breast Augmentation Surgery Increasing

Last week, Stephanie Kuleba, 18, of South Florida died while undergoing breast augmentation surgery (apparently due to a reaction to general anesthesia.) At minimum, this gives rise to the reminder that even cosmetic surgery is still surgery and brings with it the accompanying risks. While parents should certainly pay attention to the status of their teen's self-image, in my opinion, they should help their kids focus more on building a healthy self-image based on character traits, spirituality, talents and skills, rather than looks. The following report from Newsday examines the increase in the number of teen girls undergoing breast augmentation...

Last week's death of Stephanie Kuleba, 18, of South Florida, during breast augmentation surgery has drawn attention to what some describe as a growing trend. Kuleba, whose parents say she sought the surgery to correct an inverted nipple and asymmetrical breasts, died Saturday of what may have been a rare genetic reaction to general anesthesia.

According to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, the number of women 18 and younger who have had breast enlargements has risen nearly 500 percent over the past decade -- a sharper climb than the 300 percent increase in breast augmentations among all age groups.

Dr. Stephen Greenberg, a plastic surgeon in Woodbury, estimated he has seen a 20 percent to 30 percent rise in cosmetic procedures among young people. Often, he said, a girl will come in with her parents, who are buying her a breast augmentation as a birthday or high school graduation gift.

"There are girls and women who are devastated by the fact that they don't have breasts and their friends do," Greenberg said. "They don't play gymnastics and they don't go on dates or they can't wear certain clothing, and I hear these things every day."

Source: Newsday
http://www.newsday.com/news/health/ny-lisurg0327,0,2939806.story