This anniversary edition—revised and updated—goes beyond raging hormones and peer pressure to explain why adolescents act the way they do and what parents and teachers can do about it.

Why Do They Act That Way? was the first book to explain the scientific, brain-based reasons behind teens’ impulsive behavior, lack of focus, self-consciousness, territoriality, fatigue, and their quickness to anger and take risks—to name just a few common teen problems.

Now, award-winning psychologist Dr. David Walsh has updated this classic with the latest research into the adolescent brain and the new challenges that they face with social media and the 24/7 online world. With practical advice and reassuring guidance, Walsh provides realistic solutions for dealing with every day and major challenges. As a parent, psychologist, coach, and trusted expert, Dr. Walsh offers the best advice to help adolescents thrive and parents survive.

Contents

One: Making Sense of Adolescence

Two: A Guided Tour of Their Brains

Three: Why Adolescents Are Impulsive

Four: Risky Business: Helping Teens Put on the Brakes

Five: What We Have Here Is a Failure to Communicate

Six: Male and Female Brains: Sexual Stereotyping and Sexual Identity

Seven: Love, Sex, and the Adolescent Brain

Eight: Monkey Wrenches in the Brain: Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drugs

Nine: Adolescents and Media

Ten: The Story Behind Tired Teens

Eleven: When Things Go Wrong in the Brain: Adolescent Mental Illness

Twelve: The Psychological and Social Dimensions of Adolescence

Thirteen: The Importance of Connection and Guidance

Fourteen: In Conclusion

Notes

Acknowledgments

Index

David Walsh, Ph.D., is one of the world’s leading authorities on children, teens, parenting, family life, and the impact of technology on children’s health and development. He founded the internationally renowned National Institute on Media and the Family. He is on the faculty of the University of Minnesota and lives in Minneapolis with his wife, Monica. They have three adult children and five grandchildren.