Paper Example on Adolescence and Its Impacts on Life Development Stages

Introduction

Adolescence is a stage in human development that is characterized by rapid emotional and physical development which results in psychosocial and biological maturity. Most people at this age experience different emotional problems that can significantly affect their life course. Despite the significant impact of adolescence on human development, it has not been given significant attention in terms of health policy (Wolf, 2015). I started experiencing adolescence related problems at an early age of 12 whereas many people start experiencing adolescence related issues at 10 years of age. Different development theories have been put forward to help understand adolescence and will be used in this paper to create a better understanding of the different developmental issues at adolescence. The developmental theories developed by Kohlberg, Erikson and Freud will be used to support adolescent-related issues and justify how they impact one's development (Hsien-Jin, 2000). This paper is a reflection of my adolescence experiences and how they impacted my life between 12 and 18 years a time at which I was involved affected by peer pressure, started recognizing the importance of body image, sexuality and even tried using alcohol and drugs.

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Body Image

Living in an appearance oriented society made me realize how important the conceptualization of the body image can affect one's attitude and relationship with other people. During my adolescence stage, I was young and naive and before then body image did not occur to me as an issue until the age of 13 when I started focusing on ensuring I look attractive and better than all my friends. During adolescence, my body image became a significant problem as my body went through a series of development and changes that were evidential. The culture where I grew up was highly appearance oriented and as a teenager, my body image expectations were shaped by the local culture.

My experience and body image orientation during adolescence is supported by Kohlberg argument that social relationships and culture play a significant role in reinforcing the development of the ideal image. During this time I was overweight which led to a significant decline in self-image satisfaction as I started viewing slender bodies more appealing. My body image perception was shaped by the popular culture at the time which viewed celebrities with slender bodies as more appealing and the best image (Voelker, Reel, & Greenleaf, 2015). Besides, at the same time, the culture in school viewed people with slender bodies as more representable and athletic and those that were chubby like I was were viewed as lazy and non-participants. As a result, one could lose friends for not having the ideal image and also could face ridicule in normal school activities.

As my self-image satisfaction declined I easily became irritated and could avoid crowded areas where I preferred to be secluded from other people and I enjoyed spending more time locked up in my room or in the school garden. My self-image perception during adolescence significantly affected my future development stage past adolescence because it resulted in low self-esteem and an introverted character. The primary cause of anxiety during my adolescence age was caused by the comparison between my perceived image and an idealized image that was shaped by the popular culture and experiences in schools (Voelker et al., 2015). From the age of 15 to the age of 20 I have been struggling with anxiety and low self-esteem problems that can directly be linked to the social-cultural environment.

Sexuality

During adolescence, the perception of sexuality commences and during this time I experienced unusual sexual urge and unfamiliar emotions especially when I was in company with people from the opposite sex. During adolescence, I was highly interested in knowledge regarding sexuality and how to frame sexuality from an individual perspective. As such, it is during adolescence that I developed individual identifiable values on sexual oriented relationships even before I could experience the actual sexual activity. I was lucky to have supportive parents who provided sexual education and helped me to deal with the emotions which at some point were uncontrollable. Freud has played a significant role in expounding on this important developmental phase (Hsien-Jin, 2000). During adolescence, one's ego becomes highly vulnerable due to retrogressive and progressive actions aimed at organizing new sexual experiences and fantasies. The ego structure of the human mind and the Id can help to explain my experience during adolescence with the intense urge to experience sexual intimacy (Kar, Choudhury, & Singh, 2015). As such, the Id postulated by Freud to explain the human mind can be used to explain the high tendency and feelings to be intimate during adolescence. At this time, between 12 and 15 years I was in school surrounded by people of the opposite sex who were also going through adolescence. What I craved for at the time was instant gratification but was shaped by watching popular Hollywood movies which showed explicit scenes of characters being intimate which fueled my need for immediate gratification by having sex.

The Ego structure of human mind can be used to explain the counter behavior to the adolescence unfamiliar emotions on sexuality especially due to the influence of the popular culture at the time that had normalized sex through films and magazines. Parent's guidance strengthened the Ego structure of the mind which brought about rational thinking on the possibility to wait for the right time and partner to enjoy sexual intercourse with as well as the caution of getting infected with sexually transmitted diseases.

Peer Pressure and Family Dynamics

Peer pressure played a significant role in the development of ideologies and understanding during adolescence. At adolescence, it appeared normal from the age of 15 to identify myself with a circle of friends who influenced my dressing, sexual orientation and my body image perception. Friends during adolescence have a high impact on how people view life and can significantly cause disastrous experiences due to the experimentation nature of adolescents (Wolf, 2015). During adolescence, my dressing and the kind of music I listened to was highly influenced by the circle of close friends whom we could discuss fashion and music with and failing to conform made me feel left out.

Adolescence period was a difficult time and the vulnerability of peer pressure was very high due to the need to identify with a group as well as anxiety and self-esteem problems which were evident at the time (Wolf, 2015). These experiences can be explained by the Piaget theory and Sigmund Freud psychosexual development theories. According to Piaget, the social environment plays a significant role in influencing one's behavior and it during adolescence the social group plays a significant role in determining one's activities (Hsien-Jin, 2000). Drug abuse was one of the issues experienced that was caused by negative peer pressure and the inability to have an individual stand due to low self-esteem and anxiety saw myself become a regular marijuana smoker at the age of 16 which I was only able to overcome after being counseled by my mother on the dangers of marijuana. Therefore, family dynamics despite being affected by the tendency to want high privacy plays a significant role in helping young people to cope with adolescence.

Adolescence and Issues of Diversity

Ethnic and racial diversity during adolescence became quite clear and shaped relationships and peer groups boundaries which were highly determined by ethnic and racial backgrounds. During adolescence, one could identify with people who are of their same social standing and mostly ethical background. People with similar social standing could identify similar activities and leisure locations which led to racial related groupings which sometimes led to animosity amongst different groupings (Papathanasiou & Lahana, 2007). This phenomena during adolescent is common and has been explained by Kohlberg and Piaget who argue that the social environment affects one's moral development.

Adolescence Experience Impact on Mental Health Clinician

As a mental health clinician, adolescence experience can influence one's view on social interactions and how they affect mental and cognitive development in later stages in life. Low self-esteem which is developed by body image and sexuality ideation can have a lasting impact on an individual and during mental health assessment, a mental health clinician should assess how social interactions and groupings could affect one's behavior as an adult. Therefore, the social aspect of adolescence results in peer influence and ideation which can influence one's mental development and character.

Conclusion

Adolescence is a period where one goes through various mental, physical and social development and can shape an individual future behavior. During adolescence, the biological and emotional changes at the time led to the development of new behaviors. It is during adolescence that most people develop ideation and perception on body image and sexuality. Body image and sexuality impact one's self-esteem, performance in school as well as cases of anxiety. Peer pressure during adolescence can lead to the development of new behaviors and tastes in fashion while restricting one's participation in the family as well as the choice of friends. Mental health clinician can understand better individual and group-based behaviors by understanding the dynamics of adolescence.

References

Hsien-Jin, T. (2000). Sociocultural and developmental theories as explanations of body image dissatisfaction amongst secondary school girls. Malaysian Journal of Psychiatry, 8, 15-21.

Kar, S. K., Choudhury, A., & Singh, A. P. (2015). Understanding the normal development of adolescent sexuality: A bumpy ride. Journal of human reproductive sciences, 8(2), 70.

Papathanasiou, I., & Lahana, E. (2007). Adolescence, Sexuality and Sexual Education. Health Science Journal, (1).

Voelker, D. K., Reel, J. J., & Greenleaf, C. (2015). Weight status and body image perceptions in adolescents: current perspectives. Adolescent health, medicine and therapeutics, 6, 149.

Wolf, L. K. A. (2015). Effects of Peer Influence in Adolescence (Doctoral dissertation, UCL (University College London)).