What are the social tasks and challenges of adolescence?

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Social Tasks and Challenges of Adolescence
Adolescence can be described as the period of growth between childhood and adulthood. The adolescence period is estimated to start from the ages of 12 or 13 years and extend up to around 20 years of age or more (Santrock 20). The period of adolescence may not be very distinctive though with others experiencing shorter or longer periods of adolescence than others, especially for the case of females who experience puberty earlier than males.
Most adolescents encounter the feeling of pressure to find or frame themselves within a specific social identity. The challenge of finding their own identity or trying to fit within a particular social construct may drive adolescents into committing actions such engaging in drug abuse or engaging in risky sexual behavior to prove a point to their peers. Another factor for the much portrayed behavioral changes is the surge in hormones and the hormonal changes caused by the increased estrogen levels in female and testosterone levels in males can contribute to a lot of mood changes for adolescence which may contribute to higher levels of depression in adolescents (Kroger 32). Adolescents can also be described during their development period as more abstractly oriented in their thinking than before the onset of puberty. With this particular change, they begin to pay close attention to their environment and the individuals around them.
The increased abstract thinking may push adolescents to act out or do things that can be considered as out of order or wild to stand out from a “crowd.

” For example, adolescent girls may change their form of dressing from a conservative look to a much revealing look, shorter skirts, and tops that reveal more cleavage, to increase their popularity in school or attract the opposite sex (Santrock 43). For males, the increased testosterone levels may mean increased muscle development and tend to become more aggressive than usual. Adolescents face a lot of challenges during the growth and development which may be aggravated by other social issues they are facing but with proper guidance and mentoring the process of adolescence can be managed to ensure that they pass through this period with ease.
Works Cited
Kroger, J. Identity development: Adolescence through adulthood. Sage Publications, 2007.
Santrock, J. W. Adolescence. 2016.