ABSTRACT
Adolescence is generally a time of rapid change, both physiological and psychological. In early research and theorizing, the emphasis was on the 'storm and stress'
of adolescence, but later work has tended to show that adolescence is not always so stressful. Offer and Sabshin ( 1984 ), for example, found that very high levels of stress were characteristic of only 21 per cent of the adolescents in their sample. Nevertheless. even for the placid majority, adolescence is a developmental turning point that marks the passage to maturity. Working through this stage demands
psychological adjustment to a dramatic and far-reaching sequence of changes,
In addition to the dramatic physical growth and developing sexuality of this phase of the life cycle, adolescents increase their capacity for abstract reasoning, and hence for entertaining and exploring alternatives. Erikson ( 1968) suggested that the central task of adolescence was the establishment of a clear sense of personal identity . including the resolution of the question of future career. and the formation of values and beliefs. It is within this context of dramatic physical and cognitive change that adolescents face their central social challenge: balancing the paradox of independence and dependence , of autonomy and connection, in a broadening context of relationships with both family and peers. For these reasons, parentadolescent relationships have been of great interest to researchers.
