You might think that your teen does not pay attention or care about what you have to say. Stanford University researchers published a study in the April, 2022 Journal of Neuroscience which refutes this reaction. Teens are not being insensitive or rebellious by not listening to their parents; rather, they are neurologically wired to process their parents’ voices differently at this stage of their development. During their earlier childhood years, they intensely tuned into their parents’ voices which promoted their social, emotional, and language development. During the teen years, their brains change to emphasize stronger responses to unfamiliar voices. In this way, teens successfully enlarge their social world. They begin to move away from the primary influence of parents to the formation of greater connections with people outside of their family.
Parents are their children’s first and most important teachers and role models, but as children enlarge their social environment, outside influences become more prominent. This is the unique challenge each teen faces. Family life and values remain important, but peers and other meaningful adults (teachers, coaches) compete for attention and focus. Teens struggle to form a unique identity, a normal part of the maturation process. Please realize that they might not be tuned into you, but their ears are biologically tuning into many new voices which aid in this milestone of development.
All Blogs are written by Professionals in the fields of Nutrition, Human Development and Diabetes.