Taking Sides: Clashing Views in Adolescence

PART 1. Adolescent Health ISSUE 1. Should Adolescents Be Taking Antidepressants? YES: Yvon D. Lapierre, from "Suicidality With Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors: Valid Claim?" Journal of Psychiatry & Neuroscience (vol. 28, no. 5, 2003) NO: Tamar Wohlfarth, Barbara J. van Zwieten, Frits J. Lekkerkerker, Christine C. Gispen-de Wied, Jerry R. Ruis, Andre J.A. Elferink, and Jitschak G. Storosum, from "Antidepressants Use in Children and Adolescents and the Risk of Suicide," European Neuropsychopharmacology (vol. 16, 2006) Yvon Lapierre, a professor emeritus at the department of psychiatry at the University of Ottawa, reviewed relevant literature addressing the concern that increased suicidality was associated with the use of antidepressants including SSRIs. He concludes that the evidence currently available does not support the hypothesis that antidepressants cause increased suicidality in patients with depression. Tamar Wohlfarth, a clinical assessor, and colleagues in the Netherlands assessed antidepressant use in pediatric patients and reported an increased risk for events related to suicidality among those taking antidepressants. They caution the use of all SSRIs and NSRIs in the pediatric population. ISSUE 2. Should Adolescents Be Allowed to Drink Alcohol? YES: Rutger C.M.E. Engels, Ron H.J. Scholte, Cornelius F.M. van Lieshout, Raymond de Kemp, and Geertjan Overbeek, 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, Scholte, van Lieshout, de Kemp, and Overbeek, 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 2003) Teresa Stanton Collett, law professor at University of St. Thomas School of Law, testifies in front of the U.S. House of Representatives in support of the federal Child Custody Protection Act. She advocates parental involvement in a minor's pregnancy, regardless of the girl's intention to carry or terminate the 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: Donald R. McCreary and Doris K. Sasse, from "An Exploration of the Drive for Muscularity in Adolescent Boys and Girls," Journal of American College Health (May 2000) NO: Duane A. Hargreaves and Marika Tiggemann, from "Idealized Media Images and Adolescent Body Image: `Comparing' Boys and Girls," Body Image (vol. 1, 2004) Donald McCreary and Doris Sasse, researchers at Brock University, suggest that adolescent boys are just as likely as girls to experience body image dissatisfaction. They contend that by the portrayal of the "macho" muscular body as an ideal image in many men's health magazines is a likely cause. 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.PART 2. Sex and Sexuality ISSUE 5. Should Adolescents Get Comprehensive Sex Education Outside the Home? YES: Angela D. Weaver, E. Sandra Byers, Heather A. Sears, Jacqueline N. Cohen, and Hilary E.S. Randall, from "Sexual Health Education at School and at Home: Attitudes and Experiences of New Brunswick Parents," Canadian Journal of Human Sexuality (Spring 2002) NO: Robert E. Rector, Melissa G. Pardue, and Shannan Martin, from "What Do Parents Want Taught in Sex Education Programs?" Backgrounder: The Heritage Foundation (January 28, 2004) Results from a survey conducted by Angela Weaver, an instructor at the University of New Brunswick, and colleagues indicated that the majority of parents support the commencement of sexual health education in elementary school or middle school. Further, parents supported the inclusion of a broad range of sexual health topics at some point in the curriculum, including birth control and safe sex practices. Robert Rector and colleagues from The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank in Washington, D.C., report strong parental support for abstinence programs in schools. Further, Rector, et al. report that parents strongly oppose "comprehensive sex-ed" curricula that teaches teens that sex is okay as long as contraception is used. ISSUE 6. Should Adolescents Have Easy Access to Condoms in Schools? YES: Susan M. Blake, Rebecca Ledsky, Carol Goodenow, Richard Sawyer, David Lohrmann, and Richard Windsor, from "Condom Availability Programs in Massachusetts High Schools: Relationships With Condom Use and Sexual Behavior," American Journal of Public Health (June 2003) NO: Alison Campbell Rate, from "Kids and Condoms," Open Doors Counselling and Education Services Inc., (February 2002) Researchers Blake and colleagues conclude that condom distribution has a positive effect on protective sexual behavior but leads to no increase in sexual behavior. Campbell Rate, executive director (Hon) of Open Doors Counselling and Educational Services in Australia, argues that condom distribution to teens is problematic for a variety of reasons and may have a negative impact on the psychological development of youth. ISSUE 7. Is There Cause for Concern About an "Oral Sex Crisis" for Teens? YES: Sharon Jayson, from "Teens Define Sex in New Ways," (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 are experts 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 8. 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, Mary A. Ott, Maureen Lyon, Jennifer Rogers, Daniel Summers, and Rebecca Schleifer, 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 9. Does Sex on TV Negatively Impact Adolescent Sexuality? YES: Rebecca L. Collins, Marc N. Elliott, Sandra H. Berry, David E. Kanouse, Dale Kunkel, Sarah B. Hunter, and Angela Miu, from "Watching Sex on Television Predicts Adolescent Initiation of Sexua
l Behavior," Pediatrics (September 3, 2004) NO: Rebecca L. Collins, Marc N. Elliott, Sandra H. Berry, David E. Kanouse, and Sarah B. Hunter, 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 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 "Was It a Phase? Young Women's Relinquishment of Lesbian/Bisexual Identities Over a 5-Year Period," Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (vol. 84, no. 2, 2003) 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 evidence from a 5-year study that young women tend to be more fluid in terms of sexual preference than adolescent males. 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.PART 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, Margot Prior, Ann Sanson, and Diana Smart, 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 Cyber-Friendships Hinder Healthy Adolescent Development? 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: Elisheva F. Gross, Jaana Juvonen, and Shelly L. Gable, from "Internet Use and Well-Being in Adolescence," Journal of Social Issues (vol. 58, no. 1, 2002) 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 have more self-esteem and are less lonely. Elisheva Gross and colleagues, researchers of adolescent psychology, conclude that adolescents mainly engage in online communication with close others, and such communication is just as effective as face-to-face communication and is mainly devoted to ordinary yet intimate topics (e.g., friends, gossip, etc.).PART 4. Antisocial 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. Is School-Related Violence Increasing? YES: Kathryne M. Speaker and George J. Peterson, from "School Violence and Adolescent Suicide: Strategies for Effective Intervention," Educational Review (vol. 52, no. 1, 2000) NO: Dewey G. Cornell, from "Myths about Youth Violence and School Safety," Virginia Youth Violence Project Kathryne Speaker, assistant professor of education at The College of New Jersey, and George Petersen, associate professor of education at California Polytechnic State University, argue that the number of incidents of violence and the severity of these acts have dramatically increased. Dewey Cornell, professor in the Curry School of Education at the University of Virginia and director of the Virginia Youth Violence Project, provides evidence that violence in schools is not increasing. ISSUE 17. 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, from "`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 and relational aggression. ISSUE 18. Is the Use of "Club Drugs" a Problem Among Adolescents? YES: Eric Sigel, from "Club Drugs: Nothing to Rave About," Contemporary Pediatric
s (October 2002) NO: Jacob Sullum, from "Sex, Drugs, and Techo Music," Reason (January 2002) Eric Sigel, assistant professor of pediatrics and adolescent medicine, argues that club drugs such as Ecstasy, GHB, Rohypnol, and Special K are dangerous. Their use, especially at rave parties, allows participants to overlook social barriers and helps individuals to relate better to others. Sigel cautions that some drugs that are taken at rave parties, especially GHB, have led to date rape. Jacob Sullum, a senior editor at Reason magazine, contends that the effects of drugs such as Ecstasy, particularly with regard to sexual behavior, are exaggerated. He refers to the history of marijuana and how it too was deemed a drug that would make people engage in behaviors in which they would not typically engage. Sullum maintains that the public's reaction to club drugs is unjustified.