ADOLESCENCE: Taking Sides--Clashing Views in Adolescence, Second Edition
Unit 1 Adolescent Health
Issue 1. Should Adolescents Be Taking Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) for Depression? YES: Christopher J. Kratochvil et al., from "Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors in Pediatric Depression," Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychopharmacology (vol. 16, no. 1/2, 2006) NO: Tamar Wohlfarth et al., from "Antidepressants Use in Children and Adolescents and the Risk of Suicide," European Neuropsycho pharmacology (vol. 16, 2006)
Christopher Kratochvil M.D., an associate professor of psychiatry at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, and colleagues in the United States, examined recent data from meta-analyses and re-assessed the risk/benefit relationship associated with the use of SSRIs for pediatric depression. They conclude that SSRIs play a role in the treatment of pediatric depression. Tamar Wohlfarth, a clinical assessor, and colleagues in the Netherlands assessed antidepressant use in pediatric patients and report an increased risk for events related to suicidality among those taking antidepressants. They caution the use of all SSRIs and NSRAs in the pediatric population.
Issue 2. Should Adolescents Be Allowed to Drink Alcohol? YES: Rutger C.M.E. Engels, et al., from "Peer Group Reputation and Smoking and Alcohol Consumption in Early Adolescence," Addictive Behaviors (vol. 31, 2006) NO: Sandra A. Brown, from "Providing Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment Services to Adolescents," Testimony Before the U.S. Senate, Subcommittee on Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services (June 15, 2004)
Engels and colleagues, researchers in the Netherlands, suggest that substance use, while potentially problematic, may serve beneficial developmental functions for adolescents. Particularly, adolescents who drink alcohol appeared to be more self-confident and sociable than those who abstained based on peer evaluations. Researcher Sandra Brown, a psychiatrist from the University of California–San Diego, argues that early onset of alcohol and drug use put youth at greater risk for neurological damage, alcohol related injuries (e.g., from drinking and driving), and future substance dependence.
Issue 3. Should Parental Consent Be Required for Adolescents Seeking Abortions? YES: Teresa Stanton Collett, from Testimony Before the Subcommittee on the Constitution, Committee on the Judiciary, U.S. House of Representatives (September 6, 2001) NO: Nancy E. Adler, Emily J. Ozer, and Jeanne Tschann, from "Abortion Among Adolescents," American Psychologist (March 23, 2003)
Teresa Stanton Collett, law professor at the University of St. Thomas School of Law in Minnesota, analyzes the reasons for parental notification laws such as the Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act. She advocates parental involvement in a minor's decision to terminate a pregnancy. Nancy Adler, a professor of medical psychology at the University of California-San Francisco, and colleagues argue that the empirical data do not support the assumptions that adolescents are at a higher risk of psychological harm from abortion and are unable to make an adequately informed decision. In fact, studies suggest a relatively low risk associated with abortion, and adolescents seeking abortion appear to make an informed choice.
Issue 4. Do Boys Worry about an Ideal Body Image as Much as Girls Do? YES: Diane C. Jones and Joy K. Crawford, from "The Peer Appearance Culture During Adolescence: Gender and Body Mass Variations," Journal of Youth and Adolescence (vol. 35, no. 2, 2006) NO: Duane A. Hargreaves and Marika Tiggemann, from "Idealized Media Images and Adolescent Body Image: 'Comparing' Boys and Girls," Body Image (vol. 1, 2004)
Diane Jones, an associate professor in educational psychology at the University of Washington, and Joy Crawford, a doctoral student in human development and cognition at the University of Washington, suggest that adolescent boys experience more appearance pressure and teasing than adolescent girls. They also argue that boys discuss muscle building more than girls discuss dieting. Duane Hargreaves and Marika Tiggemann, researchers in the School of Psychology at Flinders University, state that adolescent girls are more vulnerable to body image pressures than boys. They argue that the glamorization of eating disorders among female celebrities and the media play a significant role.
Issue 5. Should the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) Vaccine Be Mandatory for Early Adolescent Girls? YES: Cruise, E., from "Writing for PRO position: Should the HPV vaccine be mandatory for early adolescent girls?" The American Journal of Maternal Child Nursing, 32(4), 208, 2007 NO: Anderson, T.L., from "Writing for CON position: Should the HPV vaccine be mandatory for early adolescent girls?" The American Journal of Maternal Child Nursing, 32(4), 209, 2007
Erin Cruise, an instructor of nursing at Radford University in Virginia, lists many of the reasons that public health personnel are in favor of the HPV vaccination being legislated as mandatory for young girls. She discusses the sexuality-related issues as well as a financial cost-benefit analysis associated with mandatory HPV vaccination. Tamika L. Anderson, a public health nurse and child care nurse consultant with the Davidson County Health Department in Lexington, North Carolina, argues against the implementation of a mandatory HPV vaccination for female adolescents. Some of the concerns identified are safety, choice, and cost.
Issue 6. Is the Use of Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) an Appropriate Cessation Aid for Adolescents Wishing to Quit Smoking? YES: Karen Hanson, Sharon Allen, Sue Jensen, and Dorothy Batsukami, from "Treatment of Adolescent Smokers with the Nicotine Patch," Nicotine & Tobacco Research (August, 2003) NO: William P. Adelman, from "Tobacco use Cessation for Adolescents," Adolescent Medicine Clinics (October, 2006)
Karen Hanson and colleagues, from the Tobacco Use Research Center at the University of Minnesota, present the results of an empirical study where they had adolescent smokers use a nicotine-replacement patch or a placebo patch (i.e., a patch with no nicotine unbeknownst to the participant). The results suggested that, with cognitive-behaviorial therapy and an incentive program (money for not smoking), the patch was effective at reducing withdrawal symptoms and cravings and there was some indication that the patch helped adolescents reduce the amount they smoked. Hanson et al. concluded that the patch may be helpful for adolescent smokers who attempt to quit. William P. Adelman, a physician who is a member of the Department of Adolescent Medicine at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, in a review article, argues that there are "teen" patterns of smoking and "adult" patterns of smoking and that use of nicotine replacement therapy is appropriate only for adolescents who exhibit adult-type smoking behavior. He calls for caution in the use of nicotine replacement therapy as it could be a "gateway" substance that leads to use of other controlled substances or results in other unintended negative physiological consequences.
Unit 2 Sex and Sexuality
Issue 7. Does Engaging in Early Sexual Activity Cause Depressive Symptoms in Adolescents? YES: Robert E. Rector, Kirk. A. Johnson, and Lauren R. Noyes, from "Sexually Active Teenagers are More Likely to Be Depressed and to Attempt Suicide," A Report of the Heritage Center for Data Analysis (CDA03-04, Heritage Foundation, 2003) NO: Joseph J. Sabia, from "Does Early Adolescent Sex Cause Depressive Symptoms?" Journal of Policy Analysis and Management (Autumn, 2006)
Robert Rector and colleagues from the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank in Washington, D.C., contend that teens who are sexually active are significantly more likely to be depressed or suicidal than virgins. Joseph J. Sabia, a University of Georgia economics professor, analyzed the same data set as Rector et al. but found that, by considering other variables, the relationship between sexual intercourse and depression disappeared.
Issue 8. Is There Cause for Concern About an "Oral Sex Crisis" for Teens? YES: Sharon Jayson, from "Teens Define Sex in New Ways," http://www.USAToday.com (October 19, 2005) NO: Alexander McKay, from "Oral Sex Among Teenagers: Research, Discourse, and Education," Canadian Journal of Human Sexuality (Fall/Winter 2004)
Journalist Sharon Jayson argues that more than half of 15- to 19-year-olds are engaging in oral sex. She reports some experts are becoming increasingly worried that adolescents who approach this intimate behavior so casually might have difficulty forming healthy intimate relationships later on. Alexander McKay, research coordinator of the Sex Information and Education Council of Canada, argues that the discourse about oral sex is somewhat exaggerated but may be used as a vehicle for increasing discussions with teens about their motives for sexual activity, which, in turn, can help guide sex education initiatives.
Issue 9. Is Comprehensive Sex Education for Adolescents Too Liberal? YES: Aida Orgocka, from "Perceptions of Communication and Education About Sexuality Among Muslim Immigrant Girls in the US," Sex Education (October 2004) NO: John Santelli et al., from "Abstinence and Abstinence-Only Education: A Review of U.S. Policies and Programs," Journal of Adolescent Health (vol. 38, 2006)
Aida Orgocka, a gender and development expert at the University of Illinois, presents a qualitative study of Illinois mothers' and daughters' perceptions of the sexual health school curriculum from a Muslim perspective. The participants tended to find the sex education curriculum at odds with Muslim values such that many of the girls opted to forgo the school-based sexual health classes. John Santelli, a professor of clinical population, family health, and clinical pediatrics at the Mailman School of Public Health in Columbia University, and colleagues review current U.S. policies encouraging abstinence-only sexual health education and discuss the potential negative impact and ethical considerations arising from these policies on adolescent sexual practices.
Issue 10. Does a Traditional or "Strong" Double Standard with Respect to Sexual Behavior Exist Among Adolescents? YES: Mary Crawford and Danielle Popp, from "Sexual Double Standards: A Review and Methodological Critique of Two Decades of Research," Journal of Sex Research (February 2003) NO: Michael J. Marks and R. Chris Fraley, from "The Sexual Double Standard: Fact or Fiction?" Sex Roles (February 2005)
Mary Crawford, a psychology professor at the University of Connecticut, and her graduate student Danielle Popp present evidence suggesting the double standard that males are socially rewarded and females socially derogated for sexual activity exists among adolescents as it does among adults. Researchers Michael Marks and Chris Fraley oppose the above claim and suggest that there is little evidence that the traditional double standard exists among adolescents or even among adults.
Issue 11. Is Female Sexual Orientation More Fluid than Male Sexual Orientation During Adolescence? YES: Lisa M. Diamond, from "A New View of Lesbian Subtypes: Stable versus Fluid Identity Trajectories over an 8-year Period," Psychology of Women Quarterly (vol. 29, no. 2, 2005) NO: Margaret Rosario, Eric W. Schrimshaw, Joyce Hunter, and Lisa Braun, from "Sexual Identity Development Among Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Youths: Consistency and Change Over Time," The Journal of Sex Research (February 2006)
Lisa Diamond, an assistant professor of psychology and women's studies at the University of Utah, presents the results of an 8-year study that compared women who were "stable" versus "fluid" in their sexual orientation self-labeling and found that those who were "fluid" had more fluctuation in their physical and emotional attractions as well as sexual behavior and romantic relationships. She argues for acknowledging the important role of female plasticity in sexual orientation research. Researchers Rosario and colleagues oppose the hypothesis that females are more sexually fluid than males. They argue that female youth were less likely to change their sexual identity than males.
Unit 3 Relationships
Issue 12. Does Divorce or Disruption in Family Structure During Adolescence Have a Detrimental Effect on Development? YES: Paul R. Amato, from "The Impact of Family Formation Change on the Cognitive, Social, and Emotional Well-Being of the Next Generation," The Future of Children (Fall 2005) NO: Eda Ruschena et al., from "A Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Adjustment Following Family Transitions," Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry (vol. 46, no. 4, 2005)
Sociology professor Paul Amato presents evidence that children growing up in stable, two-parent families are less likely to experience cognitive, emotional, and social problems than those who do not. Eda Ruschena, a psychologist at the Catholic Education Office in Melbourne, and her colleagues from the University of Melbourne claim that adolescents do not necessarily experience negative social, emotional, or psychological outcomes during family transitions.
Issue 13. Does Dating Impede Developmental Adjustment for Adolescents? YES: Deborah P. Welsh, Catherine M. Grello, and Melinda S. Harper, from "When Love Hurts: Depression and Adolescent Romantic Relationships," in Paul Florsheim, ed., Adolescent Romantic Relations and Sexual Behavior (Lawrence Erlbaum, 2003) NO: Wyndol Furman and Laura Shaffer, from "The Role of Romantic Relationships in Adolescent Development," in Paul Florsheim, ed., Adolescent Romantic Relations and Sexual Behavior (Lawrence Erlbaum, 2003)
Researchers Welsh, Grello, and Harper, while not arguing that all teen romantic relationships are detrimental, demonstrate how such relationships can be a catalyst for teens who are at risk to develop depression. Wyndol Furman, a child clinical psychologist at the University of Denver, and Laura Shaffer make the case for areas where romantic relationships can impact teen development. While many of their arguments are speculative or supported only by correlational research, they make a compelling case for the benefits of teenage romances.
Issue 14. Do Online Friendships Hinder Adolescent Well-Being? YES: Lauren Donchi and Susan Moore, from "It's a Boy Thing: The Role of the Internet in Young People's Psychological Wellbeing," Behavior Change (vol. 21, no. 2, 2004) NO: Patti M. Valkenburg and Jochen Peter, from "Online Communication and Adolescent Well-Being: Testing the Stimulation Versus the Displacement Hypothesis," Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication (vol. 12, 2007)
Psychologists Lauren Donchi and Susan Moore suggest that adolescent boys who rate their online friendships as very important are more likely to have lower self-esteem and to be lonely. Those with more face-to-face friendships are higher on self-esteem and less lonely. Professors Patti Valkenburg and Jochen Peter, in the Amsterdam School of Communications Research at the University of Amsterdam, argue that online communication enhances well-being through its positive effect on time spent with friends and quality of friendships.
Unit 4 Problem Behaviors
Issue 15. Should Adolescents Who Commit Serious Offenses Be Tried and Convicted as Adults? YES: Daniel P. Mears, from "Getting Tough with Juvenile Offenders: Explaining Support for Sanctioning Youths as Adults," Criminal Justice and Behavior (April 2001) NO: Laurence Steinberg and Elizabeth S. Scott, from "Less Guilty by Reason of Adolescence: Developmental Immaturity, Diminished Responsibility, and the Juvenile Death Penalty," American Psychologist (December 2003)
Daniel Mears, an associate professor for the College of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Florida State University, reports that for serious offenses, there is widespread support for sanctioning youths as adults. He points to a conservative group, fearful of crime, worrying about social order and public safety. Laurence Steinberg, distinguished university professor at Temple University, and Elizabeth Scott, law professor at the University of Virginia, argue that adolescents often lack the capabilities to make mature judgments, control impulses, and resist coercion from peers and therefore should not be held to the same standards of criminal conduct as adults.
Issue 16. Are Girls Bigger Bullies than Boys? YES: Melanie J. Zimmer-Gembeck, Tasha C. Geiger, and Nicki R. Crick, from "Relational and Physical Aggression, Prosocial Behavior, and Peer Relations: Gender Moderation and Bidirectional Association," Journal of Early Adolescence (November 2005) NO: Christina Salmivalli and Ari Kaukiainen, "'Female Aggression' Revisited: Variable- and Person-Centered Approaches to Studying Gender Differences in Different Types of Aggression," Aggressive Behavior (vol. 30, 2004)
Melanie Zimmer-Gembeck, an assistant professor of psychology at Griffith University in Australia, and her colleagues report gender differences in levels of relational aggression, which is a type of bullying. In early adolescence, girls are more relationally aggressive than boys. The authors argue that girls may use relational aggression to gain and keep friends. Christina Salmivalli, professor of applied psychology, and psychologist Ari Kaukiainen, both from University of Turku, argue that boys use all types of aggression more than girls in early adolescence. This included direct aggression, verbal aggression, and indirect or relational aggression.
Unit 5 Media
Issue 17. Does Sex on TV Negatively Impact Adolescent Sexuality? YES: Rebecca L. Collins et al., from "Watching Sex on Television Predicts Adolescent Initiation of Sexual Behavior," Pediatrics (September 3, 2004) NO: Rebecca L. Collins et al., from "Entertainment Television as a Healthy Sex Educator: The Impact of Condom-Efficacy Information in an Episode of Friends," Pediatrics (November 5, 2003)
Rebecca Collins and colleagues from the RAND Corporation present evidence from a longitudinal survey that adolescents who viewed more sexual content at baseline were more likely to initiate intercourse and progress to more advanced sexual activities during the subsequent year. Collins and colleagues in an earlier study suggested that entertainment television can also serve as a healthy sex educator and can work in conjunction with parents to improve adolescent sexual knowledge.
Issue 18. Do Video Games Impede Adolescent Cognitive Development? YES: Philip A. Chan and Terry Rabinowitz, from "A Cross-Sectional Analysis of Video Games and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Symptoms in Adolescents," Annals of General Psychiatry (vol. 5, 2006) NO: Jing Feng, Ian Spence, and Jay Pratt, from "Playing an Action Video Game Reduces Gender Differences in Spatial Cognition," Psychological Science (vol. 18, no. 10, 2007)
Philip Chan, from Lifespan at Rhode Island Hospital, and Terry Rabinowitz, from the University of Vermont College of Medicine, report a significant association between playing video games and inattention and may lead to problems in school. Jing Feng, Ian Spence, and Jay Pratt, from the University of Toronto, report that playing video games can enhance spatial attention, which have been associated with success in mathematics and science courses.
Issue 19. Are Social Networking Sites (SNSs), such as Facebook, a Cause for Concern among Adolescents? YES: Ralph Gross and Alessandro Acquisti, from "Information Revelation and Privacy in Online Social Networks (The Facebook Case)," In Proceedings of the 2005 ACM Workshop on Privacy in the Electronic Society, ACM Press, New York (2005) NO: Nicole B. Ellison, Charles Steinfield, and Cliff Lampe, from "The Benefits of Facebook 'Friends': Social Capital and College Students' Use of Online Social Network Sites," Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication (vol. 12, 2007)
Ralph Gross, and Alessandro Acquisti, Carnegie Mellon University, argue that participation in social networking sites, such as Facebook, exposes users to both physical and cyber risks. Researchers Nicole Ellison, Charles Steinfield, and Cliff Lampe from the Department of Telecommunication, Information Studies, and Media, at Michigan State University present evidence suggesting a strong positive association between Facebook and social capital, self-esteem, and life satisfaction.
