Teenagers and risk seem to go hand in hand. As teens walk the path of becoming independent adults, exploring their limits and abilities is part of developing their identities. Risk-taking is an important way for teenagers to learn about themselves. It peaks at around 15-16 years and tends to tail off by early adulthood. While it’s very stressful for parents,
Read moreIn today’s current online environment, social media has encouraged vandalism through challenges, dares, or viral trends. For example, after the pandemic, the “Devious Licks” trend on TikTok portrayed students stealing or destroying items in school. The US Department of Justice defines vandalism as “willful or malicious destruction, injury, disfigurement, or defacement of any public or private property, real or personal,
Read moreGambling is quite popular in our society, and children are exposed to the concept at early ages. There are many gambling advertisements on TV and social media that promote the idea that gambling is fun, exciting, and a way to get rich easily. Movies glorify gambling and show the “big win.” Many video games and apps allow children have gambling
Read moreOur society has some strong stereotypes about the “type of parent” who raises a teen who is a troublemaker. Our culture implies that kind of kid must belong to a parent who doesn’t care or doesn’t spend enough time with their kid or is abusive or doesn’t make their child feel loved or is too permissive. And, the idea makes
Read moreWhen teens behave badly, it can feel infuriating! Parents are bound to feel frustrated when their teen acts defiant, withdrawn, aggressive, or unmotivated. We might feel that our teen is ungrateful, entitled, disrespectful, or that he/she hates us. While these are perfectly natural reactions, we are missing an important key. Don’t guess or assume that your teen is acting out
Read moreAccording to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), the most common crimes committed by youth from 2015-2020 were theft, simple assault, and property crime. Unfortunately, these types of delinquent acts can lead to major detrimental effects on a young person’s life, such as injury, drug use, dropping out of school, incarceration, and future adult criminal behavior. The next generation is
Read moreOnline activity is an important area for parents to protect their teens from potential harm. But even the most Internet savvy parents may not realize that there is an area of the Internet that can expose their teens to serious danger. There are basically three parts to the world wide web: the surface web, deep web, and dark web. The
Read moreYouth violence affects thousands of young people each day, which in turn impacts our schools and communities. Youth violence typically involves young people hurting other peers who are unrelated to them and who they may or may not know well. Examples include fights, bullying, threats, and gang-related violence. A young person can be involved with youth violence as a victim,
Read moreA little-known sex crime called “sextortion” is becoming more common, and teens are often the victims. Sextortion is when a perpetrator obtains a victim’s private and sensitive photos or videos and then threatens to release them publicly unless the victim meets their demands. Perpetrators tend to blackmail their victims into paying them money, sending sexual images or video, or performing
Read moreThe most common crime committed by juveniles is the United States is theft. This can include shoplifting, robbery, burglary, and other property theft. Unfortunately, teens that steal and get away with it tend to progress further and further into criminal activity. It becomes a slippery slope that leads a teen to a destructive lifestyle. So, how do we keep a
Read moreJanuary is National Stalking Awareness Month, so it’s a great time to talk to your teen about stalking. A 2016 study in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine surveyed 1,236 randomly selected youth and found that 14% of girls and 13% of boys were victims of stalking. Additionally, the survey indicated that these teens were more likely to report symptoms
Read moreIt is a rare teenager that has never been tempted to sneak out of the house. At some point, most teens are asked by their friends to meet up after curfew or to come out when they are grounded. Unfortunately, rarely does anything good happen when teenagers are hanging out in the middle of the night. To protect teens from
Read moreTeens certainly know how to push our buttons, and they can frequently be a source of conflict in our homes. Sometimes, however, a teen can be more problematic than that. If you are the parent of a teen who is using drugs, engaged in illegal activity, or is violent or abusive, then the level of stress in your home is
Read moreBefore you think that this blog does not pertain to you or your teen, you should know that teen shoplifting is a rising problem nationwide. There are approximately 27 million shoplifters (or 1 in 11 people) in our nation today, and 25% of them are juveniles (age 17 and under). Teens may call it “five finger discount”, “lifting”, “jacking”, “racking”,
Read moreJuvenile crime triples between 3 and 7 p.m. Why? Approximately 8 million children, ages 5 to 14, spend time without adult supervision on a daily basis. Sixty percent of 6th to 12th grade students spend at least 2 hours at home every day without an adult. Parents are at work, and youth are left to their own devices after the
Read moreThere are approximately 1.4 million active gang members in more than 33,000 gangs in the United States. Over 40% of these members are children under the age of 18, and almost a quarter are female. Gangs are highly prevalent throughout the country, and they actively recruit members as young as 9 years old. Children are motivated to join a gang
Read moreThe US Department of Justice defines vandalism as “willful or malicious destruction, injury, disfigurement, or defacement of any public or private property, real or personal, without the consent of the owner or persons having custody or control.” Vandalism includes a wide variety of acts, including graffiti, damaging property (smashing mailboxes, trashing empty buildings or school property, breaking windows, etc.), stealing
Read moreWhen you hear the word “crime,” what comes to your mind? Maybe a man in black sneaking around after midnight? Everyone has their own image of what crime is, but the statistics might surprise you. Did you know that out of all the violent crimes (murder, assault, rape, robbery with a weapon, etc.) committed in the United States, 1 in
Read moreDefinition Bullying is not new but “in the old days,” children could take refuge at home, where they felt safe and unthreatened. Unfortunately, teens are now being bullied at home over the Internet. Online harassment can leave victims feeling helpless, overwhelmed, and unable to escape from the torment. Examples of cyberbullying include: vicious forum posts; name calling in chat rooms;
Read moreAccording to the National Runaway Switchboard, more than 1.5 million teenagers run away from home each year. Eighty-six percent of runaways are between the ages of 14 to 17 and 74% are female. One out of every seven children will run away before they turn 18 years old. Seventy-five percent of runaways who remain at large for two or more
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