Reexamining the concept of adolescence: differences between adolescent boys and girls in the context of their families

As part of a larger study on family functioning, the authors administered a questionnaire on individual attitudes toward family values to 158 Japanese-American and Caucasian families. Differences between the generations on questions of authority and responsibility were predictable; few differences were found between ethnic groups. However, differences were striking between adolescent boys and girls, regardless of ethnicity: Girls valued family affiliation, closeness, and emotional expression significantly more highly than did boys. The authors emphasize the need for families to value girls' needs for closeness and emotional expression as highly as boys' needs for independence and self-differentiation. They suggest that the concept of separation-individuation as the major goal of adolescence be reexamined.