It is a warm Saturday evening, and the night is still young. A 17 year old high school football star and a bunch of his teammates are at a house party celebrating their latest victory. At the end of the night, four of them were trying to determine who was “the most sober” in order to drive home. In the end, it was decided by a drunken game of rock, paper, scissors. On the drive home, aside from being intoxicated, the driver was also speeding and ended up losing control, going into a ditch, and finally slamming into a tree. Two of the teenagers died, one was paralyzed, and the other ended up with multiple broken bones and abrasions. While this is a story I made up, it is one that is all too familiar for many families and nightly news watchers. If these young men were a bit older would they still have made those same decisions? The lack of judgement and rationalization occurring in this story is likely due, in part, to the teenager’s brain not yet fully being developed, and the effects this had on their behaviours. Being that adults have a fully functioning frontal lobe, they are better equipped to think about something before they do it (Swerhone, 2012). This thinking can become critical in being able to determine consequences that may result because of their actions (Swerhone, 2012). Teenagers, on the other hand, are far more impulsive and “risk-taking” (Swerhone, 2012). When they think about doing something they are often quick to do it without giving much thought to the dangers or problems that their actions can cause (Swerhone, 2012). The reasoning for this lies in the fact that teenagers do not take in and process information in the same part of the brain that adults do (Swerhone, 2012). Adults use their frontal lobe which ... ... middle of paper ... ...d get better after that break-up and is beginning a journey using their newly developed skills. Works Cited Anderssen, E. (2011, September 24). Teen suicide: ‘We’re not going to sit in silence’ . The Globe and Mail. Deeth, S., & Eagle, G. (2011, September 1). Friends of Tara Sanderson shocked she is facing second-degree murder charge. Retrieved January 27, 2012, from The Peterborough Examiner: http://www.thepeterboroughexaminer.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=3282881 Scrivener, L. (2011, December 03). People who attempted suicide as youth trace their recovery. Retrieved January 27, 2012, from TheStar: http://www.thestar.com/news/article/1096524--people-who-attempted-suicide-as-youths-trace-their-recovery Spinks, S. (Director). (2002). Inside the Teenage Brain. Swerhone, E. (Director). (2012). Nature of Things: Surviving :) The Teenage Brain.
Approximately, five teenagers attempted suicide each day (Haesler 2010 para. 1). The fact makes some group of people (especially the ones who are part of the society) concerned. Somehow, youth suicide will result in an unintentional sign for help (Carr-Gregg 2003, para. 1). Communities related to the victims will be affected mentally and they will feel grief, pain, and loss that are so great that it overcomes the economic ...
Similarly, going along with the prior rebuttal of the importance of differentiating juvenile’s characteristics and actions of that of an adult, science is compiling more evidence of its vitality. Many adults can look back and reminisce about an action he or she did when younger and say, “Wow I cannot believe I did that.” Science has proven the reason behind that is because an adolescent’s brain has not yet fully matured. Tsui states “Studies conclusively established that the brain of an adolescent is not fully developed, particularly in the area of the prefrontal cortex, which is critical to higher order cognitive functioning and impulse control” (645). The facts of scientific research need to be taken into consideration when distinguishing
American Psychological Association experts state that on average when compared to adults, 16 and 17 year-old juveniles are more: emotionally volatile, aggressive, impulsive, reactive to stress, vulnerable to peer pressure, likely to take menacing risks, prone to dramatize short-term advantages, under mind the long term consequences of their actions, and are likely to omit alternative courses of action. This may have something to with the fact that the adolescent brain is under developed. For example, according to experts at the Massachusetts General Hospital Center for Law and Brain Behavior “Modern neuroscience is demonstrating that the teen behavior we all observe has a brain signature that can be scanned...” and “ Their frontal lobes, the regions that synthesize and organize information, that consider the consequences of actions, and serve to inhibit impulsive behavior are not fully developed, nor will they be until the early to mid 20s.” (Edersheim, Beresin, Schlozman 2013) The front of the brain contains important nerve circuitry that functions by ...
Beautiful Brains by David Dobbs is an article about why teenagers usually take more risks than adults. In the article Dobbs begins by discussing how his son once got in trouble for speeding down a highway just because he was curious to know what it felt like. He then goes into asking why teenagers often do "stupid" things and then explains that teens have always done that throughout time. He provides scientific evidence that the brain changes between the ages of 12 to 25 affecting our decision making. One way that a reader could interpret this data is that teenagers have a hard time using new parts of their brain and seem to be in a state of retardation. Dobb also describes the reckless acts of teenagers in order for them to adapt to any situation.
A 17 year old boy, Douglas Stewart, came home from school to find his mother lying on the sofa with a strained back. Being concerned for her he rubbed her back briefly then put on some easy listening music. Douglas then proceeded downstairs to his bedroom. Two of his friends came to the door. His mother waited to see if he would return to answer it; minutes later she answered and then yelled for him to come up. When he did not come, she went downstairs to get him. That is when she found him strangled and her son’s body dangling from the ceiling. This is a senseless tragic sight for a mother to endure. The mortality rate from suicide in 1996 showed 9.5 per 100,000 for 15-19 year olds. This also shows boys are four times more likely to commit suicide then girls. However, girls are twice as likely to attempt suicide. (American 1996) It is imperative to reverse this trend and in doing so we need to understand the characteristics, behaviors and events associated with youth suicide.
There are many things which can drive a teen to commit suicide some of them are as simple as making fun of the “fat” kid in class; others can come from the mental images from witnessing a shooting. There are four major issues which contribute to teen suicide such as depression, family problems, risk factors, and teens reactions to there climate. Depression, unfortunately, is one of the biggest factors of today’s teenage suicide problems and some of the reasons for it are from the student’s own peers, “being depressed is triggered by loss or rejection (Joan 59).” Depression can be f...
Chandler, Michael. "Self & Cultural Continuity as a hedge against youth suicide." university of british columbia, 7 february (2012).presentation.
During earlier years of adolescence, the Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex, responsible for “executive and logic functions” is lesser developed than at the age of 20-years when adolescent is almost matured (Fig. 1). As a result, the ability to plan and think on long-term at the beginning of adolescence is far limited than adult. On one hand, this limits their ability to overcome certain social fears (earlier or later puberty may results in developing social stigma) and on the other hand, encourage them to engage in risky behaviors (extreme sports, pregnancy).
"The teenage brain is like a car with a good accelerator but a weak brake. With powerful impulses under poor control, the likely result is a crash.” (Ritter). An adolescent does not have complete power over their impulses, unlike fully developed adults. “The frontal lobe includes the prefrontal cortex, which controls executive functions like planning, decision-making, the expression of emotion, and impulse control. The prefrontal cortex may not be completely developed until a person is in his or her mid-twenties. This explains why adolescents have less impulse control than adults, are less able to think through the long-term consequences of their decisions, and are more susceptible to peer pressure. Does it make sense, then, to punish a youth in the same way we punish adults?” (Harris). The brain w...
...harm has sky rocketed and needs to be addressed immediately. In addition, as I covered towards the beginning of the core assessment, the important variables and culprits on suicide and self-harm include psychological, family, and social problems in society. In my personal opinion, the media outlets need to contain on what they report in reference to teenager suicide. With all the solutions and treatment plans I mentioned in this assessment, there is very minimal evidence of the effectiveness. The major challenges I foresee in the future for this ongoing problem include the understanding and comprehension of adolescent suicide in addition to the contributors. Identifying preventative measures aimed at young teens considered a high risk and the effective treatment options are challenges that are difficult, yet; very attainable with a collective effort from everyone.
Suicide is the third ranking cause of death in the fifteen to twenty four age ranges. Days after Richard Kirchhoff’s son committed suicide, he decided he wasn’t going to keep quiet. “Most people don’t like to say the ‘s-word’, which is part of the problem” (Richard Kirchhoff) is a public speaker against teen suicide; he tries to help families understand that they are not alone in anything. Kirchhoff urges parents to sign a form stating that they want to see the progress their student is having in school and how many times they have visited the campuses medical visits.
Kuklin, Susan. After a Suicide: Young People Speak up. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1994. Print.
Teen suicide as an extremely complex tragedy, that unfortunately happens all the time throughout the United States. There are friends, parents, and peers that are facing the misfortune of losing a young, close, loved one to suicide. Most people don't realize that adolescent suicide is common. They don't want to believe how often this occurs in the secure environment found in the small towns of America, as well as in its largest cities.
Now the eighth-leading cause of death overall in the U.S. and the third-leading cause of death for young people between the ages of 15 and 24 years, suicide has become the subject of much recent focus. U.S. Surgeon General David Satcher, for instance, recently announced his Call to Action to Prevent Suicide, 1999, an initiative intended to increase public awareness, promote intervention strategies, and enhance research. The media, too, has been paying very close attention to the subject of suicide, writing articles and books and running news stories. Suicide among our nation’s youth, a population very vulnerable to self-destructive emotions, has perhaps received the most discussion of late. Maybe this is because teenage suicide seems the most tragic—lives lost before they’ve even started. Yet, while all of this recent focus is good, it’s only the beginning. We cannot continue to lose so many lives unnecessarily.
A young, teenage girl sits with her friends, talking, laughing, and making jokes. She seems completely normal and happy, even. What people don’t know is that this is nothing but a mask covering the loneliness that seems to run through her veins, and the unexplainable sadness that never goes away. She fears speaking of it, of admitting the uncontrollable hatred she feels for everything about herself, so much that she contemplates ending it all. The fact is, suicide is the third leading cause for death in people under the age of twenty-five. Our country needs to stop seeing this as a casual thing. Depression, anxiety, and suicide in youth are real and serious issues that we need to be more aware of in today’s society.