Week 10 Post 2

In chapter 16, the section called "Relationships with Adults" greatly interested me. The first part of this section is about parent-adolescent relationships. It is noted that parent-adolescent relationships are pivotal but they can also be peaceful. In these relationships, arguments are common because parents desire to maintain control over their children while adolescents are seeking independence. Early-adolescence is the time in which parent-adolescent conflict peaks. There is usually bickering about routine day-to-day concerns. Some bickering may indicate a healthy family. By age 18, teenagers' emotional maturity and reduced egocentrism allows them to appreciate their parents. In most cases, parents and teenagers try to balance the need for independence and closeness with less disclosure but improved communication as the adolescent matures. Another part in this section deals with closeness within the family. Family closeness has four aspects which are communication, support, connectedness, and control. Developmentalists agree that communication and support are helpful and maybe even essential. Observers differ about what they see in regards to connectedness and closeness. Parental monitoring is an important issue which is parental knowledge about each child's whereabouts, activities, and companions. When monitoring is part of a warm, supportive relationship, children are likely to become confident, well-educated adults, avoiding drugs and risky sex. Adolescents play an active role in their own monitoring as some are eager to tell their parents about their activities while others are secretive. Monitoring is a good sign if it indicates mutual, close interaction. Monitoring may be harmful when it derives from suspicion and secrecy instead of a warm connection.