post 4 - News Article "Risky Business: Why Teens Need Risk to Thrive and Grow"

In her Article “Risky Business: Why Teens Need Risk to Thrive and Grow” written for Psychology Today, Elizabeth Donovan explores the possible reasons as to why taking risks is so important for the development and growth of teenagers. In the article Donovan says that not all forms of risk taking should be considered bad because there are positive risks as well as negative risks. It is true that we see risks as being reckless or acting in a way that may cause us physical harm, but not all risks have to be physically challenging. Alternatively, positive risk taking is crucial for the promotion of healthy neurological development and mental growth during the critical adolescent period. Taking risks at this age for teenagers helps develop their character, and helps them to “find” themselves.

I agree with this article. Risk taking is a part of everyday life. It is everywhere and humans, inevitably, take risks all the time. But we live in a society that sometimes ridicules teens who take risks. The older generations call them trouble makers and label them as students who are not serious about their futures. We live in a society that prioritizes “safety” above everything else, and I do not blame them for being so, it is a fact that once in their adult ages, the brain functions differently and responds to different situations differently therefore blaming adults for seeking safety would be a complete waste of time because they are literally “wired” to seek it.

And yet, they tell us that we as adolescence are immature, and we do not see the other perspective and think that we know everything. But the problem is that we do understand that priorities change as time passes by. We understand that when we grow up we will be different, our wants will be different, our pleasures, desires, and needs will be different. And still they blame us for not being mature, for not thinking before acting, for being children. When we understand where they are coming from, is it too much to ask the same from them? Shouldn’t it be easier for them because they’ve already been through adolescence? They have already gone though all the things we are going through now, so shouldn’t it be easier for them to relate to our situation? To understand that, just like them, we are “wired” to take risks not just for the sake of taking risks, but for our personal and mental development? To remember that they too were once kids trying to find their place in this ever-so-confusing-and-constantly-changing world we live in?

But I guess that this is one of those situations where adults think they are always right about everything just because of the fact that they are older. They sometimes ignore blatant logic, and demand that children respect them when they have not earned it, demand that children always listen to them without questioning their motives or reason. And when we try to talk to them to try to convey our point of view it’s called “talking back” and being disrespectful. When we don’t say anything because we know it is futile to even try getting our point of view across, it’s called showing “attitude.”

And still adults blame us for not being mature, smart, intelligent, and understanding. All we do is wonder why.