Teen Suicide Essays (Examples)

Teen Suicide and Schools

The recent spate of school shootings has focused attention on violent behavior among teenagers. However, little attention has been given to another insidious and more common form of violence among young people -- the rise in teenagers committing suicide.

This paper looks at the silent epidemic of teen suicide and the role schools could play in addressing this issue. The first part of the paper is an overview of teen suicide, looking at the scope of the problem and main causes of suicide among young people. In the second part, the paper looks at the changing role schools have played in preventing suicide and examines the current suicide prevention programs in place. Finally, the last part studies the barriers that stand in the way of such programs and suggests solutions to the problems.

Teen Suicide: An Overview

The suicide rate among teenagers has risen steadily over…

Teen Suicide

Suicide among teenagers is one of the great tragedies of our world today. It affects families, schools, and the community (Bostik and Everall, 2007). Interestingly, many teenagers who go through suicidal feelings overcome them, if not with ease, then at last in time. This could be an important factor in devising prevention and intervention strategies, especially for high-risk cases where the teens in question may not overcome their feelings. Currently, not much is known about how adolescents overcome suicidal feelings. Hence, Bostik and Everall (2007) conducted their study around this phenomenon to determine how intervention strategies could be devised around preventing suicide in teenagers by helping them to overcome such feelings.

In general, studies on suicide have focused on identifying risk factors for suicide in teens, with emphasis on variables such as demographics and psychiatry. The authors point out that little evidence exists to suggest that these studies…

As far as I am concerned, the issue of whether or not a state can legislate marriage based on its own definition of social mores was settled in Loving v. Virginia, when the Supreme Court declared that it was an Equal Protection violation to have anti-miscegenation statutes. Sex is clearly as much of an immutable characteristic as race, and it seems illogical to prevent people from entering into a legal relationship, such as marriage, on the basis of an immutable characteristic. However, attitudes about homosexuality very rarely seem rational. Instead, they seem to come from another, irrational place, where homosexuality stands as a symbol for some type of greater evil.

For example, opponents of same-sex marriage often talk about the traditional definition of marriage. They discuss the fact that marriage has traditionally been limited to pairs of one-male and one-female. However, these arguments ignore much of human history. First, marriage,…

Meta-Analysis on Teen Suicide

One of the leading treatments for depression are selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, or SSI's, however their effectiveness seems to be age related. In a recent study titled "Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors and risk of suicide: A systematic review of observational studies," the authors assert that the effectiveness of these drugs is dependent upon the age of the patient. Young patients aged 25 or younger, had an increased risk of suicide or suicide attempt while patients aged 65 or older had a reduced risk. The risk for those aged between 25 and 65 was found to be neutral.

This study was a quantitative study because it used data from other studies to calculate the statistics involved in the relationship between the use of SSI's and suicide. One of the major aspects of a quantitative study is the use of statistics to present evidence in the form of…

een Suicide

Suicidal behaviors among teenagers remain a national menace. It has been found from large scale national survey data that about 20.5% teens harbored suicide thoughts within 12 months while about 7.7% attempted suicide at least once within this period (Centers for Disease Control, 1998a), suggesting that a large number of youths stand the risks of being prone to suicide. his is most applicable for young boys. A good example is the 1995 data which showed that the number of boys that committed suicide whose ages fell between 15 and 19 were about five times more the number of girls who committed suicide (Kramer Gould, 2001)

Researches carried out on American high school students showed that the total number of teens having suicide thoughts and considering suicide as a solution to their depressions reduced significantly between 1991 and 1997, but a notable increase was recorded on students who attempted…

Help her to realize that having a child may interfere with her future career, but that many mothers have successful home and job lives. There are an infinite number of options, and a determined teenager can find a way to success. Do not skirt around the issues of danger, however, as teenagers are more likely to miscarry or have other complications with their pregnancy such as premature labor and low birth weight of the child. Teenage mothers are more likely to need bedrest during the late stages of pregnancy, and a cesarian section during birthing, and the child is at greater risk for any number of complications.

Of course, while supporting a pregnant teen is vital, the key to solving the problems faced by teenagers dealing with pregnancy is to stop it before it happens.

Provide accurate and unashamed information about sex and pregnancy to children and teenagers, and encourage…

Furthermore Search volumes for the terms "suicide" and "depression" were highly correlated with each other, as were "teen suicide" and "depression." McCarthy eventually concluded that "a connection between suicide and internet search activity has been supported, suggesting internet searches for suicide-related terms may predict actual self-injury and death."

This is very important for forensic psychologists who are looking for more predictive behaviors to deter suicide. Google, as a predictive tool, can now be used to understand cycles and trends within the high-risk groups that may be contemplating suicide. This article suggested that many demographic relationships can also be spotted using Google Trends. This is by no means a panacea for forensic psychologist, but this method can be used to hone in on more specific variables such as location or age, and use them to help pinpoint a more specific trend.

Although seemingly very simple, Google can really help provide quick…

Teenage Drinking

The Dangers of Teenage Drinking:

The Possibility of Losing Life in Less than One Minute

There is no greater danger today than the juxtaposition of human force against machine. When this duality comes into play, there is no escape, and its clash can only lead to a violent end. One could envisage such a metaphor for any kind of accident, but especially for the automotive kind. Indeed, of any accident, car accidents are perhaps the most dangerous, with 39 million deaths a year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Of these accidents a good number are due to drinking, and especially to teenage drinking, of which one hears stories in newspapers almost daily. The following paragraphs will thus shed light on teenage drinking and why it is so incredibly dangerous, not only when it comes to cars and driving, but also when drinking socially, and drinking too much.…

Skylar, unfortunately, was a handful, and Gladys was already well into middle age. Gladys assumed that since Danielle had abdicated parental responsibility that Lindsey would do the same. She did not feel that she would be able to care for a second baby.

The abortion went through as scheduled, and Lindsey returned to school soon afterwards. For Lindsey, though, things didn't return to normal. The girls at school called her a baby-killer and started making threats against her. She sank into a deep depression. She had deeply wanted the baby and she thought she would have made a good mother. Lindsey was always a quiet person and not one to share her innermost thoughts, so it was a surprise and a blow to everyone when Gladys came home from work early to find Lindsey unconscious in her bedroom, with a suicide note on the dresser and an empty bottle of…

& Naugle, A. (2008). Intimate partner violence theoretical considerations: Moving towards a contextual framework. Clinical Psychology Review, 28(7), 1096-1107.

Eckhardt, C.; Jamison, T.R. & atts, K. (2002). Anger Experience and Expression Among Male Dating Violence Perpetrators During Anger Arousal. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 17(10), 1102-1114.

Eckhardt, C.; Samper, R. & Murphy, C. (2008). Anger disturbances among perpetrators of intimate partner violence: Clinical characteristics and outcomes of court-mandated treatment. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 23(11), 1600-1617.

Langhinrichsen-Rohling, J. (2010). Controversies Involving Gender and Intimate Partner Violence: Response to Commentators. Sex Roles, 62(3-4), 221-225.

Palo Alto Medical Facilities (PAMF). (2010). Abusive Romantic Relationships. PAMF.org.

Smith, M. & Segal, J.…

Teenage Bullying

Chink, Spic, Terrorist, Whore, Nerd. These words seem to be just the beginning sparks of what most people characterize as bullying. The words and phrases are familiar enough; high school students across the country hear these insults being thrown out just as commonly as a larger student with his gang picking on a smaller and weaker student. The essence of teenage bullying has not changed; rather, with the amount of digital media and social platforms created today, there seems to be more reason to expect bullying -- both at school and online.

Bullying itself comes in many forms and sizes. It can be one hulking, leader-like personality with the aim at a Machiavellian increase in status in the school's social standing (Hamarus). Another can be the result of a racial slur and the violent actions taken against a differently ethnic individual -- perhaps even using an entire gang…

Teenage Girls Involved in Abusive Dating elationships

Aggression in teenage dating leading to physical, emotional and psychological damage is a social problem not only because of its effects on the teenagers but also because of its prevalence.

Howard and Qi Wang (2003) report figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showing that overall the prevalence of non-sexual courtship violence ranges from 9% to 65%, depending on the definitions and research methods used. Howard and Qi Wang's study reported "almost one in ten of the 9th- through 12th-grade females who participated in the 1999 Youth isk Behavior Survey reported being a victim of physical dating violence (i.e., had been hit, slapped, or physically hurt on purpose) within the past year." Further studies and figures report that about one in five of adolescent girls has experienced dating violence. Some of the physically abusive behaviors perpetrated in dating include being scratched,…

Social Media and Suicide

Social Media

Internet has become a gadget of everyday use for people of 21st century. As it is offering many benefits to the users in terms of information communcaition, interaction, entertainment, socialization and earning livelihhod, there are certain dark factors related to it. The dark factors are as severe as forcing people to commit suicide. It is no exaggeration to mention that Intenet is used as a medium to harass people and get undue benefits from them.

Social media today is playing major role in enabling people and organizations to communicate and share ideas, views and knowledge with other people. The traditional methods of communication have been modified through social media platforms like chat rooms, social networking sites (Facebook, My-Space, Twitter, Google+ etc.), video sites (YouTube), discussion forums, video chat, text messages, blogs etc. (Lexton et al., 2012). The most well-known social networking website Facebook had…

School esponse to Student Suicide: Postvention

The emotional impact on family and friends following an adolescent suicide - and the school's response to a suicide - has not been the subject of the same level of intense research as have: a) the causes of suicides; and b) programs to prevent suicides. However, there is now an emerging body of solid research on what protocol a school can put into place, to be more prepared in the unfortunate circumstance of a teen suicide. Indeed, on the subject of tragedy, in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, many schools and communities re-tooled their crisis/response plans for dealing with such threats. And yet, in many ways, the sudden, inexplicable death of a student can cause serious psychological ramifications to fellow students on a part with the shockwaves following an attack by terrorists. And hence, this paper analyzes literature that…

teenage sexuality. The writer links research and theory to a practical problem and discusses how they are similar. The writer also discusses teenage sexuality in the context of education. There were six sources used to complete this paper.

Americans have adjusted a lot of their thinking when it comes to teenage sexuality during recent years. There was a time when a pregnant teen would have been removed from the school and sent to a school for unwed mothers. There was a time when a sexually active female was labeled a slut, or said to be loose. Those days are on the retreat as Americans accept teenage sexuality more than ever before. With that acceptance comes the question of when and how to teach sex education. Schools are at a crossroad because they are dealing with pregnant teens but many parents are opposed to the sex education of their children within…

Case Study: Teen Depression
Teen depression needs serious attention since it occurs at that phase of life when young adults start to explore life and its adventures. If the starting of their life is negative, then there is a negative impression on their minds for the rest of their lives. This paper explores the symptoms of teen depression and it impacts adolescents in terms of physical and mental health. As expressed in the case, the clinical manifestations of teen depression are obesity, poor physical hygiene, being socially isolated, and having suicidal thoughts. These symptoms are in line with those of adolescent depression that include suicidality, issues in proper functioning in the society, and low physical and mental health (Maughan, Collishaw & Stringaris, 2013).
According to the case, Thomas might have shown initial signs of depression due to his mother's death, moving to another place, and having problems in adjustment, especially…

Criminal Justice

Juveniles who are Imprisoned for Life with No Parole

We live in a world where human beings of any age commit and are punished for menial to heinous crimes. In other words, humans at every stage of life are committing and being punished for crimes, including children and teenagers, called juveniles under the law until they reach adulthood. The paper will explore and debate the pros and cons of sentencing juveniles as LWOPs. The paper will reference recent and groundbreaking cases of juvenile crime and debatable sentencing. The paper aims to provide a modern context within which to examine and debate the use of life sentencing without parole for juvenile offenders. Ultimately, the paper concludes that LWOP for juveniles should, with great discrimination and in the rarest of cases, be used around the world, but before doing so, the stipulations for its use must be clearly stated and…

Teen Violence

Imagine being caught in the middle of a crossfire with two students shooting and you are right in the middle of it. Well that is exactly what students and teachers in Littleton, Colorado went through. On April 20, 1999, at approximately 12:20am, two students armed with semi-automatic handguns, shotguns and explosives conducted an assault on the Columbine High School and the people inside. A total of 12 students, 1 teacher and 2 suspects were killed; 24 students were transported to six local hospitals; and 100 students were treated at the scene (www.Littleton.org).Isthis what is happening inside the walls of where America's youth is suppose to be learning and in a safe environment. What can we do to prevent events like this from happening? It is a question we are constantly searching for answers to. There seems to be no concrete answers or solutions just certain explanations.

Many people,…

Music on Teens Actions

In the past 40 years all kinds of music has turned out to be more and more overt predominantly towards the negative side like sex, drugs, aggression and violence. Lately two of the genres which have caught great attention is hard rock music and rap music. In most of the cases, the lyrics of the music are made in such a way that they induce negativity in the developing minds of the teenagers. This negativity is reflected in their actions in the form of drug abuse, aggression, violence, sex and rebellious actions towards parents, family, family and society in general. This kind of negative music is a major concern these days because it poses mental and physical threat to the teens of today. Some of the other alarming effects of such music are pregnancy, STDs, accidents, killing and this has resulted to be the normal lifestyle…

If someone returns a questionnaire with identifying personal information, then it will not be used in the study and will be destroyed. The questionnaires will also be constructed so that there will be no questions that could potentially violate the participants privacy in any way. For instance, there will be no questions asked about the particulars of the child's suicide, where the mother works, what particular community she's from and what church she is a member of, etc. Questions such as these could deter the target audience from responding because of fear that their privacy could be jeopardized.

The introductory letter sent with the questionnaire plays an important role in weeding out any ethical issues that may arise. The letter will clearly define the survey and discuss why the prospective participants were chosen. They will know that none of their personal information was used in order to send them the…

(1999) formed the basis of the survey. (Vermeiren et al.)

The study found that that the older age groups and those who had previously experienced abuse were more prone to suicide as a result of the exposure to violence. In essence, the study also found in this sample of communities that exposure to violence in European inner cities is frequently experienced. Furthermore the findings.".. demonstrate that suicidal risk is increased in youths exposed to community violence, and that this risk gradually increases with the level of exposure" (Vermeiren et al.).

Another important finding is that, as was hypothesized from the literature, there is a marked and significant difference in relation to gender. Suicidal ideation was reported by 15.3% of girls and 9.5% of boys..." (Vermeiren et al.).

The authors underline the importance of this area of research in that suicide is one of the major health risks among adolescent youth.…

Housing Support on Teenager Parents

Housing Support on Teenagers

The Impacts of Housing Support on Teenagers Parent in United Kingdom

UK leads Europe in teenage pregnancies in Western Europe with 35,966 conceptions in the under 18s in 2009. Majority of these unplanned pregnancies are the cause and consequence of social exclusion in UK. (UNICEF, 2001) There are 90K teenagers under 20 years and 8k under 16-year's pregnancies in England each year; it is the highest rate in Western Europe (SEU, 1999).

Teenage pregnancy can take place before first menstrual period (12or 13 years), which can result into pregnancy but usually occurs between 13 to 20 years of age. The National Health Services spends over £63 million a year on teenage pregnancies in UK. (Dennison, 2004).

Teenage parenthood is a serious social problem; it has adverse effects on parents and children. These young mothers have greater chances of being poor, less…

Adolescents at isk of Suicide

Today, alarming numbers of young people are contemplating taking their own lives, and many follow through on their suicide ideations to actually kill themselves or to make an attempt. In sum, suicide represents the second-leading cause of death for people aged 15 to 34 years and is the third-leading cause of death among young people aged 10 to 14 years (Suicide facts at a glance, 2015). To gain some additional insights into these issues, this case study provides a description of hypothetical 14-year-old runaway Caucasian adolescent, "Jane," who as referred from a homeless shelter with suicide ideations to determine what screening and testing should be performed, a discussion concerning current recommended treatment protocol, drugs and non-pharmacological interventions, and a description of expected treatment outcomes including a corresponding time frame and follow-up plan. Finally, a summary of the research and important findings concerning adolescents such as…

Buddhist and Christina Ethic on Suicide and Euthanasia

The ethical issues associated with suicide and euthanasia are often viewed through the secular eyes of our modern world, yet many of the issues that are a part of the reasons why an individual might be for or against suicide and euthanasia are based almost entirely upon religious ethics. In this work a comparison will be drawn between the Christian and Buddhist views of the ethics of suicide and euthanasia. Comparing these two faith's standards and moral guidelines regarding these two issues will demonstrate a greater understanding of the ethics and standards associated with the modern secular moral stand on the issue in a political and personal way. The Christian and Buddhist ethic on suicide and euthanasia demonstrate a historical perspective of a very ancient ethical dilemma and the similarities and differences of the outgrowth of social and cultural responses to it…

Substance Abuse and Suicide isk Among Adolescents

Adolescents are at high risk for suicidal ideations, behaviors, attempts, and suicide.

Adolescent needs for independence, identity formation, and peer acceptance increase risk-taking behavior.

Suicide is the third-leading cause of death among people aged 15-24.

Suicide is the main reason for referrals for child and adolescent emergency psychiatric services.

There has been a steady increase in adolescent drug abuse in the United States since 1960.

Substance abuse has been proposed as a risk factor for suicidal behavior.

The study examined whether there was an association between drug abuse and suicidal behavior and whether drug abuse was specifically a risk factor for suicide.

The data collection process was a literature review conducted by two people independtly examining peer reviewed articles for relevancy and other factors, such as language, leaving 17 articles for examination. The results were then extracted and presented in a table along…

violence in the public schools. Teen violence in general has become a major concern in America today. One of the reasons for the issue being so prevalent is the number of school shootings in the last few years, especially the shooting at Columbine High in Littleton, Colorado. hile the welfare of young people is always of concern, much of the fear being generated at the present time is excessive. For one thing, teen violence is not the new phenomenon many people seem to think it is, and an analysis of our history shows that violence in the schools has always been a problem and that in fact it is diminished at the present time. In truth, though, any school violence is too much, and ways of eliminating it and protecting students in school must be found. Several "solutions" to the problem have been offered.

One such recommendation is school uniforms,…

Clearly, the problem of adolescent suicide demands serious attention. Suicides among all age groups are cause for concern but among those who are young and full of life it is of particular concern and when the factor of bullying is added it is time for society in general, school personnel, and mental health professionals to join together in an effort to examine and resolve the problem. Everyone having contact with adolescents should be aware of complaints being offered by such adolescents such as headaches, stomach aches, and eating and sleeping difficulties. Such difficulties are unusual for healthy adolescents and may be signs of the adolescent being victimized by a bully. Once the bullying has been identified, however, it is essential that a multi-disciplinary approach be adopted to not only treat the effects of the bullying but also to eradicate, as much as possible, the source of the bullying. Physicians, social…

The problem is still being ignored by a vast number of people, and ignoring it will not make it go away. The church must be involved in the education of its youth, too, because studies have shown that strong religious background reduces the risk of suicide in some youths, particularly African-Americans and Latinos (Wardlaw, 2004, pg. 37). Schools must develop programs that are more comprehensive for students and for counselors and psychologists, and they must create more funding for these programs to protect their students from harm. Journalist Portner continues, "In fact, a quarter of the deaths on school grounds are suicides" (Portner, 2001, pg. 48). Clearly, the school is heavily involved in the welfare of the child, and to ignore this is to put children at risk. The government must recognize this too, and do more to create funding for schools and local government to create more programs. This…

Depression, according to the researchers, is one of the most often felt affects of raising grandchildren. Fuller-Thompson and Minkler (2000) suggest that this psychological problem may stem from a variety of stressors involved in parenting their grandchildren, such as financial strains and a renewed requirement of helping others when they thought they would have "more time to themselves" (pg. 110). Faced with non-caregiving peers, custodial grandparents may regret the freedom, leisure, and financial stability that they may never have as a result of their parenting situations. Further, Fuller-Thompson and Minkler (2000) also note that adverse physical affects have been closely linked with custodial grandparenting, such as the "exacerbation of pre-existing chronic conditions, comorbidy, declines in self-assessed health, and limitations in one or more activities of daily living" (pg. 111). African-Americans are especially at risk because African-American women, on the whole, tend to suffer from more adverse health effects than their…

Everwood Smehra

Everwood on the WB.

Everwood is the family drama on the WB currently screening on Monday nights at 9/8c. The show is in its second season and revolves around a typical family in the Rocky Mountains. While the show seems to primarily cater towards a teenage audience, their scope of topics range from the controversial to the taboo. Last season they covered teenage abortion, teenage suicide, a minister who was suffering from sudden blindness, and teenagers with STDs. The topics may appear to be over-the-top and a little radical for television, but audiences have been very receptive to these topics, of which they obviously have been either exposed to in their daily life, or need to be aware of the issues they could become exposed to.

According to the synopsis on the website, "Andrew Brown's own life changed forever the day his loving wife died. Up until then,…

Also, a 22-44% estimate of excessive drinking is a tremendous margin of error.

Summary Article 2

Mulkern, Anne C. "Drug's Suicide Risk Prompts Warning (17 Oct 2004) the Denver Post. Section a: p. 24

While no one condones student excessive drinking as a positive societal development, the use of antidepressants for teens remains far more controversial, as does the correlation between teen suicide and prescription antidepressants. The makers of Zoloft state that adolescents commit suicide because of depression in numbers upwards of 500,000 per year -- although the difficulty of attributing suicide to a singular cause or psychological ailment, much less by the drug manufacture of an antidepressant is problematic. The statistic that 89% of doctors prescribe antidepressant drugs to adolescents for unapproved uses is from a less biased source; a Harvard psychiatrist seems more credible, although the definition of 'unapproved' or off-label is also murky. 10-11 million prescriptions were…

This is an important consideration that each clinical practitioner must contemplate sooner or later -- and perhaps it is best done sooner rather than later. It is not something I have considered lightly, but at the end of the day I am confident that I can find that balance in my life. I am person of many different interests: music, art, philosophy, writing, research; and I am a spiritual person. For me, these have always been key elements in keeping my life balanced. It has not evolved me in a perfect way, but these things in my life serve to bring me back to earth during those moments when my ego becomes to inflated, too deflated, bruised, or battered; and take comfort in, and I am grateful for all the things that keep me balanced.

I will continue to pursue my interests and develop myself socially as I work in…

acism Among Teenagers

Towel-head, Spic, Polack, Chink, Terrorist, Nigger. These are words heard constantly amidst high school halls; the perfect environment, it seems, to harbor age-old ideas about cultures that do not match the majority's collective perspective. Throughout the nation, there is a current of racism within high schools, spread with the use of entertainment media humor (largely the Internet) and underground movements that are taking the concept of cultural supremacy one step further into a more violent direction. With such a rapid abuse of cultural jokes, bullying, and quasi-revolutionary movements, how do the authorities even begin to curb the hateful currents that underlie in the schools?

In 1987, a Hispanic boy in a Northern California high school almost ends his own life after his friends get into an ugly bout of ridiculing Hispanics in general (Kohl). This Californian is an athlete at his school and a popular student amongst…

Standardized tests are only able to measure correct multiple choice answers. They cannot measure a child's creativity, their ability to problem solve, or their ability to critically evaluate information.

The culture of achievement that has accompanied the push for higher test scores has had severe physical and psychological effects on students. Taylor (2010) claims that academic stress is the greatest source of stress faced by school-aged children. He notes that many high school and college students have turned to performance-enhancing drugs such as Adderall and italin to help them concentrate. Finally, he claims that teen suicide rates have risen drastically in recent years, particularly among girls. In summary, the ever-increasing push for higher test scores has created an academic culture where stressed out students and frustrated teachers are the norm, and where very little authentic learning actually takes place. ace to the Top's push for even higher test scores may…

Coaching management styles work best for Generation Xers, complete with prompt feedback and rewards for results (Eisner, 2005). They use a team of people to support their own personal individual efforts and bring a talent for problem-solving to the workplace (Smola & Sutton, 2002).

Generation Y looks for management that will further their professional development. This young generation performs best when working for and with those who hold the same values. As they often were involved in decisions in the home, from an early age, they often expect to have decision making capabilities in their professional lives as well. For this reason, an inclusive management style works best for this generation, with feedback on their performance. When treated professionally and given challenging work that fits their skills, Generation Y performs best (Eisner, 2005). Armour (2007) notes that like Generation X, Generation Y have high expectations of their employer and their…

orks cited

Boyd, Danah M., and Nicole B. Ellison. "Social Network Sites: Definition, History and Scholarship (Excerpt)." Everything's an Argument with Readings. Eds. Lunsford, a.A., J.J. Ruszkiewicz and K. alters. Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2010. Print.

Calvo-Armengol, Antoni, Eleonora Patacchini, and Yves Zenou. "Peer Effects and Social Networks in Education." The Review of Economic Studies 76.4 (2009): 1239-67. Print.

Common Sense Media. Is Technology Networking Changing Childhood? A National Poll. San Francisco, CA: Common Sense Media, 2009. Print.

Conan, Neal, et al. "Is Creating a Fake Online Profile a Criminal Act?" Everything's an Argument with Readings. Eds. Lunsford, a.A., J.J. Ruszkiewicz and K. alters. Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2010. Print.

Cyberbullying Research Center. "Research: Summary of Our Cyberbullying Research from 2004-2010." 2011. December 5th 2012. .

Giles, G., and R. Price. "Adolescent Computer Use: Approach, Avoidance, and Parental Control." Australian Journal of Psychology 60.1 (2008): 63-71. Print.

i-SAFE America. "Cyber…

In conclusion, both juvenile sex offenders and victims of sexual abuse need to undergo treatment and counselling. The importance of treating victims of sex abuse is to ensure that the "cycle of abuse" ceases and that they can recover from their ordeal and lead normal lives. The treatment of juvenile sex offenders is to ensure their rehabilitation, depending on the problem and also separate them from the rest of society.

eferences

California Dept. Of Justic, (n.d). Megan's Law - Facts about Sex Offenders -- California

Department of Justice. etrieved April 13, 2010, from http://www.meganslaw.ca.gov/facts.htm

Harrison, L. (2009). The Ambiguity of Juvenile Sexual Offenders. Internet Journal of Criminology, 7, 1-29. etrieved April 14, 2010, from http://www.internetjournalofcriminology.com/Harrison_Juvenile_Sexual_Offenders_J

uly_09.pdf

Herrmann B, Navratil F. (2004). Sexual Abuse in Pre-pubertal Children and Adolescents.

Sultan C (Editor) Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology: Evidence-Based Clinical

Practice. Pakistan: Endocr Dev, Basel, Karger

Hunter, J.A. (2000). Understanding Juvenile Sex Offenders:…

Methods of Killing

The methods of committing neonaticide, infanticide, and filicide are as diverse as the women who commit the tragic crime. According to ouge-Maillart, Jousset, Gaudin, Bouju, and Penneau (2005), strangulation, head trauma, drowning, and suffocation were the four most frequent methods of filicide. However, in these researchers' study, some mothers used what they deem to be 'more active' methods. Five children died after being struck by their mothers' fists. Two women in the study used a firearm to shoot their children. Two died after being hit with a heavy object, by their mother -- one a monkey wrench the other a stone. One woman slit her 13-year-old's throat. In one case, a 3-year-old boy died by defenestration -- being thrown out of the window. Lastly, a 10-month-old died of starvation and dehydration, after being deprived of food and water for 10 days.

Krischer, Stone, Sevecke, and Steinmeyer's (2007)…

Nowadays, adolescent problem behavior is conceptualized as 2 empirically derived syndromes: externalizing problems (including delinquency and aggression) and internalizing problems (including depression, anxiety, and withdrawal) (Achenbach, 1991a, 1991b). Little is known about the structure of internalizing problem behavior. Accordingly, the first aim of this study is to examine the structure of externalizing and internalizing problem behavior during adolescence. (eitz, Dekovic, & Meijer, 2005, ¶ 2).

At the end of their study, eitz, Dekovic, and Meijer (2005) recount that prior research primarily focused on externalizing problems, the structure of a limited range of problem behavior, and basically found support for a 1-factor structure. Their study, eitz, Dekovic, and Meijer assert, extended previoius research as it explored externalizing, as well as internalizing problems, examining whether both types of behaviors belonged to one single factor of general problem behavior (1-factor model), or whether the two types behavior ought to be deemed two separate…

Plastic Surgery

Teen Plastic Surgery: A Controversial Medical Practice

According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, in 2007, more than 87,000 teenagers had cosmetic surgery; and that number has grown exponentially since. Although aesthetic cosmetic surgery is popular amongst United States teens, physicians and plastic surgeons worry that such invasive surgery on teens' still growing bodies can be dangerous. Other developed countries, including Germany and Australia, are considering banning all but medically necessary plastic surgery for anyone under the age of 18. However, the question remains, if such a measure were taken like that in the United States for minors stem the tide of teenagers going under the knife? This paper will address the controversy associated with teenagers and aesthetic cosmetic surgery in the United States, and the business of plastic surgery for teens, from a legal, ethical, and social responsibility standpoint.

Introduction

In a country, and dare say…

As with Lawrence's young protagonist, the burden of excellence becomes too great, and the girl feels she cannot provide for her family -- intellectually, rather than financially. The metaphor of the boy's rocking horse, endlessly rocking back and forth to churn out the names of winners in maddening repetition becomes transformed, in "Suicide Note," into another kind of repetitive metaphor, that of failed flight. The boy, who should have rode on a real horse into his future becomes locked in childhood, madness, and misery, trapped by the adult-sized needs of his family, and the girl, who should have sailed confidently into adulthood dies a failed attempt at flying. The girl is endlessly flapping her invisible wings to take flight but sinks to her death as she jumps to her demise, trying and failing to fly for real. The anonymous speaker of the poem is an adolescent, unlike Lawrence's child, and…

e. The exceptions made for impairment and age would open a Pandora's Box of legal precedence. The Death with Dignity Act and any other forthcoming active euthanasia laws will likely continue to follow the same line of reasoning, i.e. that it is the unimpaired individual who must shoulder the full responsibility of the decisions he or she is making regarding the end of his or her life. That is in fact the point of the law, that a physician's responsibility as well as the responsibility of anyone who is active in the act of euthanasia is relinquished entirely to the will of the dying individual. In the case of a child this decision cannot be made by a proxy, nor can this decision be made for an individual who is mentally impaired, by his or her guardians or care takers. Though the parents in this case have fundamentally compelling arguments…

Barbie doll top ten viral commercials as of 2013 rely mostly on You Tube, Dailymotion, Facebook and Twitter.

The third doll brand, subject to this study is Bratz. As evidenced from the four commercials assessed in the course of this study, Bratz deploys a slightly different mode of advertising, which involves marketing adult entertainment to kids. Social psychologists have argued that this strategy is very effective within the realm of modern-day material culture. Adult entertainment, which often involves depiction of violence, sex, strong language and obscenity, has become very popular among children

. For Bratz, one of the most popular commercials involves cowgirls in Texas fighting crime modelled along the risque film group Charlie's Angels. The use of guns to depict violence is central to this commercial, which has since increased the brand's digital reach through pervasive advertising on TV and in the internet. In a similar commercial, Bratz acquired…

Heathers and a philosophy of conspicuous consumption 'I am what I buy.' This notion is at the heart of what Theodore Veblen called 'conspicuous consumption.' In a modern, capitalistic society people define themselves by what they buy and their possessions. Particularly in America, where social hierarchies are seen as fluid, one's ability to earn money is seen as a marker of moral worth and success. The ability to be part of the leisure class and to emphasize social distinctions on a hierarchy through obvious displays of wealth is an important part of American culture, although we supposedly live in a democracy and a meritocracy.

However, the false nature of this notion is evident when looking at the movie Heathers, which dramatizes how a high level of income, even amongst persons who have not earned their wealth, still results in high social status. In the film, three beautiful girls, all named…

Premature Sexualisation

Public hysteria or "sex panic" involving the "sexualisation" of children may be getting a decent outing in Australia at the present moment, but it is certainly nothing new: fifty years ago it was Elvis Presley's hips that portended imminent moral collapse, two hundred and fifty and a dance craze called the "waltz" was considered immodest and the "emo kids" of the late eighteenth century were committing suicide after reading The Sorrows of Young Werther. The more recent alarmism -- typified by Emma Rush and Andrea La Nauze's discussion paper on the "sexualisation of children" in the media, or Miranda Devine's predictable whipping-up of outrage over the 2008 ill Henson photo exhibition -- is nothing new in this regard. (At this point, the new youth-related sex scandals can barely keep up with advances in technology, as the Saint Kilda's schoolgirl suddenly resorts to apologizing via YouTube, after conducting a…

Nursing

ecent research shows that mental health problems can manifest in early childhood. As many as one in ten Australian children under five exhibit symptoms of social, emotional, and mental disorders including temper tantrums, difficulty adapting to new surroundings, problems relating to peers, and hyperactivity (Edwards & Martin, 2012). Although psychological diagnoses like clinical anxiety or depression are not typically made on populations under five, researchers do identify early childhood behaviors as risk factors for developing mental health disorders later in life. Thus, being withdrawn or inhibited has been identified as "one of the best identified risk factors for later anxiety disorders," (apee, Kennedy, Ingram, Edwards & Sweeney, 2005, p. 488). Early childhood behaviors can reveal to parents and counselors the warning signs of childhood and adolescent psychiatric problems such as Depressive Disorder, Conduct Disorder and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (Sawyer, Arney, Baghurst, et al., 2008). It is important to…

Young people with poor eating habits can develop eating disorders or these disorders may be in response to various psycho-sociological issues that arise during adolescence. Irrespective of the cause, adolescents with eating disorders run the risk of a wide range of adverse healthcare outcomes, including obesity, high blood pressure, bone loss and even death. The problem is more common than many people believe, and the prevalence of eating disorders has been increasing in recent years due in part to improved recognition of the condition by clinicians. To determine the current state of affairs with adolescent eating disorders, this paper provides a review of the relevant peer-reviewed and scholarly literature to develop a background and overview of eating disorders, their effects and how these conditions are treated. Finally, a summary of the research and important findings about adolescent eating disorders are provided in the conclusion.

Background and Overview

Professional and public…

These suppositions allow the researcher to view the world from a certain perspective while ignoring other perspectives. The researcher in this study assumes that his subjects are logical human beings who have a rationale point-of-view. Their thinking is valid and reasonable and their approach is more or less along the lines of scientific thinking. In addition, we assume that commonsense thinking and scientific thinking are more or less identical in nature. With these assumptions in mind, we take a post-positivism philosophical foundation; as in line with Trochim (2000) post-positivism is the outright denial of positivism (which argues that the laws of the nature are perfunctory and therefore deductive reasoning can be the only suitable approach to comprehend nature) and presupposes that day-to-day human and scientific reasoning are more or less the same and in order to understand reality, researchers have to use not only deductive but also inductive reasoning (Trochim,…

Erickson's and Piaget's Theory of Child Development & adolescent depression

This is a paper concerning the development stages of an adolescent and depression. Erickson's and Piaget's Theory of Child Development will be used to explain what may lead to a child feeling depressed or suicidal.

DEPRESSION IN TEENS

Approximately five percent of children and adolescents experience depression at some point in their lives (AACAP 1998). Jean Piaget and Erik Erikson studied the development of the adolescents. Their theories will give clearer understanding to why teenagers become depressed and what can be done about the problem. Depression comes from a variety of problems in the adolescent's life. Recognizing depression is important. "Out of 100,000 adolescents, two to three thousand will have mood disorders out of which 8-10 will commit suicide" (Brown 1996). The causes of depression in a teenager can stem from family problems, peer pressure and bullying, and changes in…

oys and Girls Clubs of America as a Resource to Aid in the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency

oys and Girls Clubs of America

This research describes the tremendous need for nonprofit human services organizations by youth who: use drugs, commit crimes or are victims of crime, drop out of high school, and become pregnant at an early age. There are a variety of nonprofit organizations such as oys and Girls Clubs of America, ig rothers ig Sisters and Children's Aid Society that step in to try to compensate for a breakdown in modern social infrastructures. This paper summarized how each makes their own unique contributions and describes in detail the many successes of programs offered by the oys and Girls Clubs of America, proven by formalized studies. ecause human services have made such a difference in the lives of children, recommendations include additional outreach and increased funding for their activities.…

Deliberate self-harm (DSH) or self-injurious behavior (SI) involves intentional self-poisoning or injury, irrespective of the apparent purpose of the act. (Vela, Harris and Wright, 1983) Self-mutilation is also used interchangeably with self-mutilation, though self-mutilation is one aspect of DSH. Approximately 1% of the United States population uses physical self-injury as a way of dealing with overwhelming feelings or situations, often using it to speak when no words will come. There are different ways in which DSH is manifested: cutting, burning, and abusing drugs, alcohol or other substances. This occurs at times of extreme anger, distress and low self-esteem, in order to either create a physical manifestation of the negative feelings which can then be dealt with, or alternatively to punish yourself. Extremely emotional distress can also cause DSH -- this is sometimes linked with hearing voices, particularly as a way of stopping the voices.

DSH is also often called parasuicide,…

Adolescents with poor problem-solving skills are at greater risk of suicide, according to an article in the Journal of Clinical Psychology (Grover, et al., 2009). The authors concentrate on the problem of "chronic stress" in adolescents, saying it involves "deprivation or disadvantage" that is ongoing and those dynamics create a "continuous stream of threats and challenges" for the adolescent. The therapy in this research? Counselors, therapists, parents and teachers all need to help adolescents learn "well-developed problem-solving abilities" in order to "buffer the negative impact of both episodic and chronic stress…" (Grover, p. 1286).

Conclusion

Earlier in this paper it was asserted that up to 20% of adolescents in the U.S. will encounter some form of depression due to stress. The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) suggests that the best treatment for severely depressed youths is a combination of psychotherapy and antidepressant medication; that formula works better than either…

hile many articles tend to deal with the fact that victims of child abuse tend to become abusers, I wanted to go in another direction, looking at how child abuse can actually affect the life of the abused. In order to consider this, I contemplated Belik et al.'s study, "Relation Between Traumatic Events and Suicide Attempts in Canadian Military Personnel." In this article, the authors' purpose wanted to "determine whether exposure to particular types of traumatic events was associated with suicide attempts in a representatives ample of active military personnel" (Beilik et al. 93). In order to test the connection between certain traumatic events and suicide attempts, the authors drew data from the Canadian Community Health Survey, which asked respondents to mark whether they had been victims of 28 different traumatic events during their lives. One of these events was child abuse. The survey was representative of such variables including…

Because the friend is turning towards alcohol, the Adolescent Counseling Services (ACS) might be helpful. Their website is located at http://www.acs-teens.org/.They offer counseling services for young people struggling with addiction problems. In addition to ACS, Twelve-Step meetings offer support and guidance for people with addiction problems. All Twelve-Step groups are free of charge. A list of numbers can be found on the Palo Alto Medical Foundation website under "Smoking, Alcohol, and Addiction."

Because of the plethora of counseling and help services available in Santa Clara and its surroundings, the friend has an excellent chance of finding some support. If she decides that she can afford to see a professional psychologist or a psychiatrist if she needs anti-anxiety or anti-depressive medications, then she can also visit the comprehensive Santa Clara County Psychological Association website at http://www.psychsite.org/for a listing of local therapists.

Teens may be especially resentful of the way this disrupts their schedules and interferes with school, friendships, work, and other usual activities (Wallerstein, 2000). And further, especially in the case of a needy, now single parent, older children and teens in particular may now face a perceived necessity of their becoming the needy parent's new and often only source of emotional support (Wallerstein). At this same time, the older child or teen's own emotional needs begin to go (and often remain) largely or entirely unmet thereafter by one or both divorced parents (Fagan).

When this occurs, the permanently life-altering; long-term damaging psychological result is often that it effectively truncates childhood or adolescence prematurely and thereby causes older children or teens to feel that they must now act like adults themselves, thus suddenly forcing them to become more independent, self-confident, selfless and self-sufficient than they genuinely feel (Wallerstein). Older children and…

social networking has in the last couple of years stirred a lot of debate among politician and scholars alike. The level of risks and benefits associated with social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and MySpace especially to children and teenagers has elicited a mixed reaction among the debating parties. In this paper we present a systematic analysis of the implications of social networking sites for both children and teenagers with a sharp focus on Facebook. We also focus on the benefits as well as the issue surrounding the use of social networking sites by use of relevant illustrations. Overall, we evaluate how the use of computer technology has impacted the society in general and education in particular.

Definition of Social Networking

Several scholars have attempted to define the concept of social networking and its components. Boyd & Ellison (2007) define social networking sites as special web-based services that are…

" Another strongly associated physical symptom is the persistence of migraine. Wieland observes that 40% of severe IAD youth take medication for migraine. The physical detriment of migraine develops into lifelong problems that are many times hard to cure or incurable.

The physical health of youth internet addicts are hard to dissect, partly this is because physical health often results from psychological addiction, and as a result, are attributed to traditional addict like symptoms and affects. The negligence of addicts in relations to their health causes indirect health problems, that may not be directly linked to IAD, but internet use lies at the heart of how such problems will occur and are dissected.

Research Question/Hypothesis:

The problem of internet addiction among youth has been carefully dissected through both social and scientific constructs. However, prevailing research into the actual physical and mental health of youth as a direct result of internet…

hen their state of denial lifts, they are often wracked with remorse for what they've done.

The final circumstance that Resnick lists is uncommon but not unheard of among mothers who kill their children: spousal revenge. Though this is rare among women, one recent case that highlights it is the case of an Ontario mother, Elaine Campione, who drowned her two daughters in the bathtub, allegedly to keep her ex-husband from getting custody and to inflict intense suffering upon him. She even made a video only minutes after the murders, asking her ex-husband if he was "happy now" (CTV News 2010).

ith all of these circumstances potentially leading parents, especially mothers, to murder their children, legal prosecution and defense of these cases can be difficult -- at times, heart-wrenching. In the cases of mothers who have killed their children, the great majority of the defenses center around pleas of insanity.…

"

One form of self-mutilation can be thought of as culturally accepted, even in the United States. Tattoos, body piercings and earlobe earring holes are all fairly accepted in some if not all social milieux in the U.S. While these behaviors may be viewed by some as pointless self-mutilation, they have a long and multi-varied history in this and many other cultures. The focus of this article is on generally-accepted mutilation, which causes harm to the body and does not meet cultural norms. In its worst form, self-mutilation can include cutting off a limb or self-castration; it is thus a serious problem with a subset of those in the SI cohort. As with many forms of OCD, self-mutilation generally begins in late childhood and the early teen years.

The authors argue that moderate- to severe SI requires a combination of therapies. Since much of the etiology is based in family…

Adolescents' Emotional Adjustment

Reaction Paper

School Organization and Adolescents' Emotional Adjustment

att's article explores the connection between school organization and adolescents' mental health. There is a commonly held belief that adolescents receive a superior educational and interpersonal experience in private schools and small schools. att cites studies by Coleman and others that have given support to the perceived superiority of private schools. Coleman's findings in support of private schools did not however address mental health, but were instead limited to academic achievement.

att's questions "Are private schools better not only for academic achievement but for mental health? Are small schools associated with broad indicators of emotional well-being?" (2003, p.345) form the basis for her study. att's study addresses these issues by examining three indicators of adolescents' emotional adjustment: depression, suicide attempts and violent dispositions.

att's study analyzed data collected by the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent health, which surveyed health-related…