6 Values We Could Learn from Our Teenagers
It’s immense what values we adults can learn from our teenagers. Have you ever thought about it? Young people live one of the most intense stages of life and, as long as we’re able to get rid of our prejudices regarding this period, we’ll find great lessons in it.
The values of adolescents
It’s obvious that adolescents aren’t interested in just anything. In other words, not everything seems important to them, and they let us know this on a daily basis. However, they have certain indisputable values in those aspects of life that are significant and important to them.
1. The value of friendship is a priority for adolescents
We all know that friendship during adolescence is very important. In fact, many adults probably still have friendships from that time or remember them with great affection. The point is that it would do us grown-ups a lot of good to give friendship the same level of importance that teenagers give it.
2. They’re authentic
Another value that we should all admire and incorporate, is the authenticity that many teenagers have to their credit. While it’s true that many young people find it difficult to show themselves as they are, many others live according to their convictions, regardless of what others think.
This aspect has become more noticeable during the last decades, as children are gradually shedding their concerns for what people will say. How good it would do us adults to be more honest with ourselves and others!
3. They’re free and independent
Freedom is, practically, an incessant quest of teenagers. For them, it’s very important to conquer spaces based on independence and individualization. Therefore, they want to do things on their own, even if this means facing complications and obstacles for which they’re not one hundred percent prepared.
In an eagerness to explore the world, young people seek their own spaces, free from family mandates or demands. At the same time, this growing autonomy strengthens the sense of responsibility, as it entails starting to make decisions and taking charge of them.
4. They enjoy and have fun
Teenagers not only like to have fun, but they also invest a great deal of their time and energy in having a good time. Well-deservedly, well-being is one of their priorities. Therefore, they want to go out with friends to have a good time and they want to engage in innovative and exciting activities. Laughing out loud to the point of tears is common for them.
Although it’s understandable that, with adulthood, leisure time is reduced due to work responsibilities, pleasure should remain a non-negotiable value throughout life and is one of the great values we can learn from our teenagers.
5. They respect the environment
It’s clear that youth have always been representative of revolutionary struggles that aim to have a positive impact on society and the planet. Contrary to what many people would expect, it’s often teenagers who generate ecological awareness in the adult population .
The truth is that young people are concerned about climate change and its consequences. It’s urgent that we listen to their pleas and get involved in the value of respect for the environment.
6. They’re supportive
Fortunately, it’s not difficult to find teenagers committed to the community and with a very latent sense of solidarity. They tend to be sensitized, sometimes even more than adults, to vulnerable situations experienced by others.
Many young people are involved in solidarity activities such as volunteering or simply act out of empathy with the people around them. In addition, they’re willing to help selflessly. This is one of the most valuable values we can learn from our teenagers.
Teenagers also lead by example
Teenagers are much more than people with acne and emotional conflicts. The fact that they have their whole lives ahead of them makes them big dreamers. This is a rich and valuable stage in itself that provides so many opportunities for learning and growth. It’s when the belief system begins to be built and strengthened.
Therefore, we adults could observe and put into practice many of the values that teenagers have as a priority and that we also had at that stage, but that we seem to have forgotten.
All cited sources were thoroughly reviewed by our team to ensure their quality, reliability, currency, and validity. The bibliography of this article was considered reliable and of academic or scientific accuracy.
- Ochoa, G. M. (2000). Socialización familiar y valores en el adolescente: un análisis intercultural. Anuario de psicología/The UB Journal of psychology, 15-32.
- Díaz-Tepepa, G. (2007). Valores en los adolescentes. Revista mexicana de investigación educativa, 12(34), 1015-1019.
- Aspiazu, L. G. (1985). Dimensiones de personalidad y valores interpersonales en adolescentes. Revista Latinoamericana de Psicología, 17(2), 193-203.