Skills for Teens in Trouble

Jean Piaget, Erik Erikson and Lawrence Kohlberg are among the most influential cognitive development theorists, describing cognitive development as a process that takes many years, taking place in a series of stages. Each stage has specific developmental skills to be mastered before moving to the next. These stages are generally considered developmental musts, occurring in sequential order, skipping none. In the same way that some kids pick up math faster than others or some learn better by doing than by hearing, people develop cognitively at different rates, influenced by countless factors. Teens in trouble often haven't mastered important cognitive skills yet. Focusing on improving those skills can provide teens with the tools and the desire to avoid trouble.

  1. Develop Strategies for Managing Emotions

    • The teen brain experiences dramatic structural changes that support a burst of cognitive development, such as the capacity for abstract thought that moves teens beyond the earlier stage's more rigid thinking. Emotions become powerful, even overwhelming. Teens need action-specific strategies for handling emotions, especially painful emotions such as anger and sadness. Teens in trouble often lack these skills. Teach them how to identify emotions, to look beneath an initial emotional rush for the real emotion. Discuss ways of dealing with the energy of emotions and their results. Working out, for example, dissipates anger more productively than punching someone. Teaching teens the practical skills to acknowledge, identify and deal with emotions -- and why it's necessary -- decreases the risk of trouble from failing to control emotions or avoiding them through drugs and other unhealthful behaviors.

    Expand Communication Skills

    • Teens in trouble often need to polish their communication skills. Teach basics first, such as looking a person in the eye, speaking clearly and the importance of listening. A conversation is an exchange of ideas and information. That's how relationships are built and learning takes place. Communication often has a goal, such as resolving conflict. Teens should be taught to keep their goal in mind, and avoid behaviors that will obstruct reaching it, including name-calling and shouting. Teach them to express feelings and needs in a controlled manner without blaming, stating grievances clearly and respectfully, sticking to the issue at hand. They should learn to weigh how their words and tone of voice may sound to others and to carefully consider other points of view. These types of skills will help teens navigate their world more successfully, giving them the means to negotiate, set boundaries and resolve conflict.

    Enhance Emotional Intelligence to Improve Reading of Social Cues

    • Social difficulties often are a factor when teens get in trouble. Teens struggling to master communication skills and emotions often misinterpret the meanings of others people's words and actions. Teaching emotional intelligence-based skills, those targeting ̶0;the ability to get along well with other people and to make friends,̶1; according to the American Psychological Association, can foster social relationships and boost self-esteem, another factor in how teens interpret others' feelings about them. The lower the self-esteem, the more likely negative interpretations will occur. Teaching skills relating to empathy development and exercises such as watching people interact in public places can improve the reading of social cues, further increasing social success.

    Teach Skills For Creating Change

    • A sense of hopelessness and an inability to realistically picture a different future are common problems among teens who get into trouble frequently. Teaching the skills to create change is as empowering as it is practical. Teach long- and short-term planning skills, and how they work together. Creating a plan, a road map from one point to another, can open a teen's eyes to what is possible. Teach goal-setting techniques to transform that plan into a series of small goals leading to the achievement of larger goals. Being able to experience a real sense of accomplishment from readily seen progress as goals are met can be a major force of positive change in teen's life.

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