In an article that appeared in Domestic Intelligence (1.19.2009), psychologist and writer Dr. Terri Apter suggests that recent discoveries about the still-developing adolescent human brain and traditional explanations about raging teenage hormones do not sufficiently explain the teen’s experience of parents. And they therefore do not sufficiently help us understand why teenagers fight so much with their parents.
Are You Asking the Wrong Questions??
Parents struggling with challenging adolescent behavior are often asking themselves (and their therapists) the wrong questions.
They ask:
How do I make my teen listen to me?
How do I make my teen understand that “no” is “no”?
How do I get my teen to cooperate and do what I say?
How do I make my teen’s problematic behavior go away?
What would be an appropriate punishment or consequence for this particular behavior or situation?