Adolescents and Risk: Making Sense of Adolescent Psychology

About the Book

Substance abuse, gambling, sexual promiscuity, violence, mental health problems, suicide: all are risky and dangerous consequences of adolescent instability. Through the implementation of psychological research and basic theories, Johnson and Malow-Iroff expertly assess each specific risk behavior as it correlates with demographics, socio-economic statuses, and cultural factors surrounding today's youth. In addition, this book provides resources for handling harmful situations facing adolescents, offering practical and straightforward methods to aid one in negotiating positive paths for those in distress. Parents, educators, and adolescents alike will only benefit from knowing the causes of adolescent risk-taking and the ways of preventing such behavior.

Each chapter is devoted to a specific risk that many adolescents take throughout their teenage years. These include: drug abuse, gambling, sex, violence, and suicide. Johnson and Malow-Iroff discuss the mental health problems that lead to dangerous activities. Each topic explains the causes that lead to these risky behaviors, ways to prevent them, and advice that will be useful to parents and educators in addressing these issues.

Table of Contents:

Series Foreword
Chapter One: Introduction
Chapter Two: Adolescent Drug Use
Chapter Three: Adolescent Gambling
Chapter Four: Adolescent Sex
Chapter Five: Adolescent Violence
Chapter Six: Adolescent Suicide
Chapter Seven: Beyond Risk: Adolescent Mental Disorders
Chapter Eight: Possible Causes of Adolescent Risk Taking
Chapter Nine: Preventing Adolescent Risk Taking
Chapter Ten: Conclusion
Index

About the Author :

PATRICK B. JOHNSON is Professor in the Department of Human Development and Learning at Dowling College on Long Island. Before moving to Dowling, Johnson was a senior fellow and Deputy Director of the Medical Research Division at the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University. He also was Senior Research Associate at the Hispanic Research Center at Fordham University where he worked on culture and alcohol abuse for over a decade.

MICHELINE S. MALOW-IROFF is Assistant Professor in the Special Education Department at Manhattanville College located in Westchester, New York. Prior to joining the faculty at Manhattanville College, Malow-Iroff was Assistant Professor at Queens College in the Elementary and Early Childhood Education Department. In addition, Malow-Iroff is a certified school psychologist and worked in a preschool for children with special needs for eight years providing therapy and support to children, teachers, and parents.

Review :
Johnson and Malow-Iroff present a thoughtful analysis of the most pressing problems apparent in adolescents today. The authors explain how an adolescent might perceive the world and how those perceptions might lead to risky behaviors involving sex, alcohol, and other drugs or become troubled or dark enough to lead to thoughts of suicide or suicide attempts. Johnson and Malow-Iroff do not argue that all, or even many, adolescents contemplate or attempt suicide, but the risk is real and the authors explore it and other behaviors with compassion and honesty. The chapter on adolescent sex, for example, discusses statistics on sexual activity, condom usage, and the effectiveness of various teenage pregnancy prevention programs, and provides additional resources for information on this important issue. This book will be especially valuable for individuals (teachers, coaches, counselors) working with this population and for parents struggling to understand problems their adolescent might be confronting. It is not for those who think looking the other way is the solution. Highly recommended. Graduate students, professionals, general readers. Johnson and Malow-Iroff assess each risk behavior as it correlates with demographics, socio-economic statuses, and cultural factors surrounding today's youth. In addition, this book provides resources for handling harmful situations facing adolescents, offering practical and straightforward methods to aid one in negotiating positive paths for those in distress. . . For each topic, the authors explain the causes of the risky behavior and ways to prevent it, and offer advice that will be useful to parents and educators in addressing these issues.