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Adolescent Observation Interviews

Brenna Wiscombe

Family and Human Studies, Salt Lake Community College

FHS 1230 : Adolescent Development

Lucy Shirisia

April 30, 2021

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Introduction

This paper will introduce three adults through their observations of their adolescence

while answering several interview questions. The interviews were conducted in person, over the

phone and autobiographically. Discussing some of the topics of this paper, such as complexion

problems or personal value systems, required each adult to dig deeper into their memory of their

adolescence. Each adult walked away from the interview process with a better understanding as

to why they are the way they are and why they believe in the things they do.

Cam

Basic Information

Cam is currently in graduate school at the University of Utah, working towards his

Masters of Arts in Political Science degree. Cam grew up with two sisters and his mom and dad

in West Jordan, Utah. Cam’s mom is a global travel supervisor for a major technology company

in California and his dad is a shipping supervisor for a freight company in Salt Lake City, Utah.

While looking back on his adolescence, Cam put the majority of his thoughts towards his

experience as a high school student and the time immediately after.

Complexion Problems

Cam had severe acne for the majority of his adolescence. In fact, he began to take the

prescription medication, Acutane, to combat his acne. Obviously, Cam was very self-conscious

about himself because of his acne.

Maturing Too Fast/Too Slow

As an adolescent, Cam did not think very much about the way his peers were maturing.

To be more specific, he didn’t pay attention to whether or not his peers were maturing faster or
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slower than he was. Looking back on his adolescence, Cam said that he matured physically faster

than his peers; he was already six feet tall before he started eight grade. However, Cam felt that

he mentally matured slower than those around him.

Dating

During his adolescence, Cam did not date; he wanted to date, but he went on a few

dates and was never in any sort of romantic relationship. Cam states, “I didn’t find it particularly

strange because most of my friends didn’t date and it was expected in my religious identity that I

wouldn’t date when I was young (Fontaine & Wiscombe).” He is happy to report that he is now

in a stable, healthy dating relationship.

School

Cam felt normal in high school. In his own words, Cam explains, “Academically I did

okay. I had one really bad semester in junior year where I failed a class, mostly from a lack of

effort. I grasped the material and passed the AP test (Fontaine & Wiscombe).” Cam’s biggest

frustration in high school came from his math and art classes. He feels bitter towards his math

and teachers and grades that he received. “I knew I was bad at math and I was bad at art, too. But

when you get a math problem wrong, you get a problem wrong. But when you draw a bad

picture, that is a different thing entirely. I felt stupid in math class but I felt I was being punished

in my art classes (Fontaine & Wiscombe).” Socially, Cam fit right in. He was never bullied and

he was relatively happy for most of his high school career. The school he attended had students

that treated each other with respect and there were only a handful of classmates that he didn’t

like.

Relationships
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In regards to his personal relationships with his parents and siblings Cam states, “I had

a very good relationship with my siblings but a complicated relationship with my parents

(Fontaine & Wiscombe). Cam also believes that the way he sees himself has a lot to do with the

relationships he had as an adolescent. “I would say, in retrospect, I think I adopted a lot of

negative attributes from my parents. I would say I have some self-esteem issues that stem from

having to interact with a parent who placed their own desires on my head (Fontaine &

Wiscombe).” Cam had several close friends throughout his adolescence and he continues to

remain close friends with most of them today, almost ten years later.

Need for Approval

Cam prioritized the approval of his peers throughout his adolescence. Although he was

a Mormon, he felt he wasn’t “Mormon-y enough for the Mormons”. Although he was a high

school athlete, he didn’t feel “jockey enough to be close with the jocks (Fontaine & Wiscombe).”

To put it simply, Cam was more interested in close friendships and individuality than mass

popularity.

Personal Value Systems

Cam grew up in the LDS Church; his religious beliefs shaped his morals and a lot of

his personality. Although he “didn’t think too much about morality in high school”, he knew that

he was responsible for himself and put a lot of work into his own personal values.

Immediate and Long Term Goals

Some of Cam’s short term goals included doing academically well in high school,

devoting a significant amount of time to spending with his friends, and playing sports. Cam’s

long term goals included going to college, serving an LDS mission and finding a romantic

relationship.
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Onika

Basic Information

Onika is one of six children. She is currently 26 years old, working at a medical

licensing office, and has no plans to attend college. Onika’s father is a child psychologist and her

mother is an elementary school teacher. Throughout her interview, Onika answered the questions

while looking back on her time in junior high.

Complexion Problems

While in high school, Onika struggled with her self-confidence. She states, “I

remember my teeth were annoying and my skin wasn’t the best. I didn’t notice it on other people

as much as I noticed it on me (Lambert & Wiscombe).” The daily process of getting ready to go

to a junior high where all the girls seemed to be “tan, blonde and gorgeous” made Onika feel

“inadequate and less attractive (Lambert & Wiscombe).” After high school, Onika went on to

complete cosmetology school and has become a successful makeup artist in the suburbs of Salt

Lake City, Utah.

Maturing Too Fast/Too Slow

Looking back it was obvious to Onika that she matured much fast than her peers.

However, she “never paid attention to other people maturing” while she was an adolescent

(Lambert & Wiscombe).

Dating

Onika did not date while she was in junior high or high school. Onika placed priority

on other things in her life. “I never thought about it because in my mind, it was something I

would do when I grew up. I would notice people around me dating but I never felt like it was
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important at the time (Lambert & Wiscombe).” After graduating from high school, Onika began

dating and eventually got married.

School and Need for Approval

In junior high school, Onika was a very social person. In fact, during her junior year of

high school Onika was voted “Funniest Female” by her classmates. Growing up, Onika felt that

it was important that her peers accepted her and approved of the choices she made and the things

she did. In her interview, Onika briefly mentioned that she knew better than to place such large

focus on her social life. Onika also realized that she often put her social life above her

academics, despite knowing that school was something she needed to do.

Relationships

Onika has always been close with her parents. Onika believes that she “learned a lot to

get [her] to where [she] is today because of the relationship that [she] had with [her] mom

(Lambert & Wiscombe).” Her relationships with her siblings were what she considered to be

“normal”. Onika states, “My siblings and I would get along, but our relationships didn’t build

very much until we got older.” Like many adolescent girls, Onika was closer to her mom than to

her dad and closer to her sisters than to her brothers.

Immediate and Long Term Goals

While in junior high, Onika’s most notable immediate goal was to finish school

because she “didn’t care about going to school much (Lambert & Wiscombe).” After completing

her education, Onika’s long term goals included getting a job to have her own income and be

more independent, get married, and have a family. During her reflection, Onika stated, “I wanted

to go to college and get a really good job. Now that’s funny to me.”
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Brenna

Basic Information

For the final interview, the author of this paper looked inward. Brenna is currently a

freshman at Salt Lake Community College. She has eight siblings and lives with her mother and

stepdad in West Jordan, Utah. Throughout her interview, Brenna reflects on her time as a 6th, 7th

and 8th grade student.

Complexion Problems

Brenna struggled daily with her confidence. She states, “I was never comfortable with

the way that I looked. I didn’t know how to do my makeup; my mom would help me cover up

my acne but I was self-conscious about the way she did it. I was never comfortable in my

clothes. I felt like I was always judged for what I was wearing and how I looked, even though

nobody ever said anything to me about it, except for my sisters when they wanted to hurt my

feelings (Wiscombe).” While in high school, Brenna came to the realization that she did not need

to impress anyone with her looks and her self-worth came from more than the clothes she wore

or the way she did her hair.

Maturing Too Fast/Too Slow

When Brenna was in elementary school, her parents got divorced. Because of this,

Brenna mentally matured quicker than her peers. She looked at the world in a different way from

her classmates. “All of my classmates had the perfect parents and I felt like I had a firmer grasp

on the real world (Wiscombe).” Because Brenna is only a few inches taller about five feet tall,

she felt that she was physically maturing way behind her peers.

Dating
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Brenna had her first “boyfriend” in 6th grade. At her elementary school, all of the

“cool” kids had a boyfriend or girlfriend, which really meant that they avoided each other at all

costs except for holding hands on the bus. When she started attending her local junior high

school, Brenna recollects on her experience. “I wanted to date for as long as I can remember. it

seemed that everyone I knew was so smooth and charismatic around other people and I was

socially awkward. but having a boyfriend? that was the pinnacle of success at the schools I went

to (Wiscombe).” Several years after graduating high school, Brenna is in a happy and healthy

romantic relationship.

School and Need for Approval

Brenna always loved the idea of going to school. In fact, she worked extremely hard to

maintain a 4.0 GPA and when “[she] got [her] first A-, [she] cried (Wiscombe).” Homework and

getting good grades was more important to Brenna than the social aspects of school; she would

rather stay home to study than attend the popular high school football or basketball games. In

regards to being accepted by her peers at school, Brenna states, “I felt that walking in the

hallways at school was like a guppy walking past a line of sharks. I didn’t know what people

thought of me, but I could feel their eyes burning into my sole. Looking back, they probably

didn’t even look up from their friends to see me and I was exaggerating everything.”

Relationships

As mentioned earlier, Brenna has eight siblings. Of her eight siblings, Brenna was

closest with her younger sister for most of her adolescence. “We were only a year apart in

school. She was way cooler than I was so it was nice to be known as her big sister (Wiscombe).”

Because her parents were divorced, Brenna’s mom dated quite a bit during her adolescence.

Brenna was not the only one of her siblings to disapprove of her mom’s dating life; Brenna was
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the only one of her siblings to have a negative relationship with her mom because of her

disapproval. While in high school, Brenna’s mom go remarried. Brenna comments, “I started to

crave a relationship with my mom, so when she married my step-dad my sophomore year in high

school (who I actually liked), we were able to get pretty close. She became my confidante.”

Immediate and Long Term Goals

While in junior high school, some of Brenna’s immediate goals included spending

more time with her family and being awarded valedictorian in high school. However, Brenna did

not take very many concurrent enrollment or AP courses in high school so her goal of being

valedictorian was not quite as realistic. While in elementary school and the early years of junior

high, it was difficult for Brenna to name her long term goals. While in high school, however,

Brenna’s long term goals included getting a job, going to college, getting married, and starting a

family.

Comparisons and Contrasts

When conducting these interviews, it was easy to notice similarities between age groups,

genders, and personal backgrounds. For example, when interviewing Onika and Brenna (both

female), most negative observations dealt with personal appearance and popularity. This

similarity is not unusual for adolescent females. In fact, approximately 70% of adolescent girls

avoid attending school because they do not like the way they look (11 Facts About Teens and

Self Esteem). When looking at the interviews between Cam and Brenna, the differences between

the high school and elementary school mindset are clearly visible. For example, the goals of Cam

in high school focused on his future. The goals of Brenna in elementary school focused on more

immediate needs. One reason for this discrepancy is that children in elementary school have a

hard time setting realistic goals with reasonable time frames (R., D.).
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Conclusion

When conducting interviews in regards to adolescence, there are several aspects that must

be remembered. First, there are times when looking back on an adolescent experience can be

detrimental. Second, setting aside time to effectively reflect will allow for clarity and

understanding. Finally, most adults will say that their adolescence was difficult. This realization

is normal and expected. Adolescence is not easy but the need for adults to better understand the

struggles of adolescence continues to grow.

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References

11 Facts About Teens and Self Esteem. DoSomething.org. (n.d.).

https://www.dosomething.org/us/facts/11-facts-about-teens-and-self-esteem.

Fontaine, C., & Wiscombe, B. (2021, April 30). Adolescence Observations. personal.

Lambert, O., & Wiscombe, B. (2021, April 30). Adolescence Observations. personal.

R., D. (2019, May 12). The Importance of Goal Setting for Children. ChildWatch.
https://childwatch.com/blog/2019/05/11/the-importance-of-goal-setting-for-children/.

Wiscombe, B., & Wiscombe, B. (2021, April 30). Adolescence Observations. personal.