Normal Emotional Expression
Normal adolescent emotions differ from those of childhood and adulthood in many ways.
- Emotional responses are often intense and out of control. The adolescent gives way to feelings of the moment. He or she reacts out of proportion to the reason for the behavior.
- Responses shift rapidly from one extreme to the other-from joy, pride, and hope to despair and gloom, from self-confidence to self-destruction, from success to failure and back.
- There is a lack of control at times. Typically girls weep or giggle; boys grin or become silent.
- Moods become drawn out in duration. When outward expressions are inhibited, moods take over. Emotional feelings seem to get bottled up inside, where they may smolder for days.
- Oversentimentality is characteristic of teen-age emotions--for school: for family. and for peer groups.
- Steam is let off in the wrong places and at the wrong times.
- In contrast to many of the outward expressions of emotion, the adolescent keeps some things quiet. For example, feelings of possessiveness may not always be shown as open protection of territory, but some things are hidden away-candy and other food, and even unusable prize possessions of no real value. Secretiveness is characteristic of the adolescent.