There have been numerous debates concerning the influence that various types of communication with peers may have on adolescents’ behavior and development. For instance, Laghi et al. (2019) claim that adolescents with impaired social skills could be more vulnerable to binge drinking. Some conservatives point to the fact that teenagers often need to experiment with a wide range of situations that may pose a threat to them and people around them.
Young people are often encouraged by their peers to try harmful substances or perform certain socially unacceptable actions. Nevertheless, many parents question whether numerous preventive measures and strictness should deprive children of the numerous joyful moments that often define personality. Moreover, psychologists highlight the importance of developing a wide spectrum of communication skills at a young age that can be leveraged later and lead to highly valued soft skills and pleasant personal traits, allowing for a successful career and happy family life.
Despite all the influence that teachers, coaches, bloggers, and peers currently have on behavior patterns of adolescents, it is vivid that relatives continue to contribute significantly to teenagers’ moral development. Providing the right examples and being a role model can be considered the best strategy. Evidence suggests that adolescents can show signs of developmental change shortly after being exposed to advanced moral reasoning and its sophisticated forms.
Religion continues to play an essential role in the development of adolescents in many parts of the world. Involvement in religion can help find the answers to the multiple complex questions that start to arise once a teenager realizes how complicated the world is. The scale of the numerous social issues that an adolescent can understand while examining his community or neighboring communities may seriously affect his conscience. At the same time, teenagers are known to be passionate about finding the truth about complex social issues. Therefore, religion can provide the much-needed guideline on how to address numerous problems featuring injustice in a way that is highly efficient for personal growth and the development of the community.
The American Psychological Association highlighted the numerous differences between adults and adolescents. The organization claimed that immature brain development makes teenagers perform actions without genuinely recognizing the multiple consequences. Moreover, adolescents tend to feature a different spectrum of emotions and are generally significantly more impulsive. Peer pressure was also mentioned as an essential factor that can sometimes make teenager behavior so different. What is more, the association stated that adolescents have fewer opportunities to defend themselves.
Capital punishment has long been practiced in the US, and not only with adults. There were, in fact, even eight American children aged 12 or younger that were executed. Nevertheless, several laws and acts have substantially changed the situation. Currently, 27 states do not have the ability to execute death sentences at all. Moreover, in the late 1980s, the Supreme Court banned the use of capital punishment with juveniles who were younger than 16 years old. In 2005, juvenile death penalty was abolished after Roper v. Simmons.
Although there are abundant factors that support capital punishment in certain cases, there is one issue that should be considered when a state or a nation decides whether to abolish the practice or not. Wrongful execution remains a crucial factor that raises numerous concerns about the ability to execute people. Evidence suggests that death row inmates can turn out to be innocent. Moreover, DNA evidence can be applied only in a fraction of cases. Therefore, I firmly believe that capital punishment should be abolished.
Reference
Laghi, F., Bianchi, D., Pompili, S., Lonigro, A., & Baiocco, R. (2019). Cognitive and affective empathy in binge drinking adolescents: Does empathy moderate the effect of self-efficacy in resisting peer pressure to drink?. Addictive Behaviors, 89, 229-235. Web.