Sunday, September 29, 2013

Identity and Risk Taking

During my undergrad classes I remember learning about theorists Erikson, Piaget, Freud, etc.  I didn't really care about it too much then because, quite frankly, I was still an adolescent concerned mostly about what party I wanted to attend the next weekend.  I was a risk taker, probably more of one than I like to admit.  I was the "problem" child that caused lots of gray hairs for my parents.  I don't think I ever really did anything too horrible, just didn't fit the mold they wanted for me.  And, I hated school.  When I was in my teacher certification classes, much later in life, I was raising three kids, one very much in adolescence and two just out of it.  Man, those were trying years.  I appreciated learning again about all the adolescent stuff at that time because in some ways it gave me hope that I didn't really suck as a parent (ha!) and that our kids were actually normal-ish (double ha!).  All three kids came to Joe and I through our divorces so that added some interesting color to the adolescent drama as well.

Well, many more years later, it looks as though Joe and I successfully did it, we successfully raised these kids.  But I can't help but think it was dumb-ass luck.  Especially after reading Nakkula.  I think if I had read Lighfoot's research on the "culture of adolescent risk taking" it probably would have made me very nervous.  She doesn't argue that kids have to take risks to be healthy nor that kids have to challenge authority, what she argues is that high risk behavior is "common and deeply meaningful."  Yikes, glad I didn't read too much about this when I was parenting during this stage.

Parenting aside, I am finding Nakkula very interesting.  He and Toshalis pose some very interesting insights into the thoughts and actions of teens.  I like how they throw in the theorists but then add some resent research that in some ways contradicts the theorists and in other ways, enhances the research they did many years ago.  The most fascinating thing I read was on page 55.  Nakkula tells us that challenging our students more in school can actually reduce dangerous high risk behavior.  Really?  I'm hoping we have a chance to chat about this some more in class

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