Kids misconseptions of adults.?

Question

Why do children (around the age of 12-16) think that they know more than their parents? Why do they assume that their parents haven't been there and done that? It's so frustrating to hear my younger sister talk down to our father. I feel sad for her because she's so young and doesn't understand that she's in the wrong. But I also feel anger towards her because she's acting so foolishly! She's now 13 and not acting like the reasonable person that I once knew. I used to think she was so mature for her age. Recently, she has bold face lied to our dad about seven times in the past two days and get ANGRY at me for catching her! WTF?! That doesn't even make sense! Why is she being so unreasonable!?

I tried to explain that parents know more about certain things than you'd think at that age. And as a matter of fact, they probably know more than YOU about what you think YOU know more about than them. They're not naive. And they're definitely not stupid. It's just ridiculous. You're opinions?

Answer 1

Teenagers hate to listen to how people call them "immature" or "not ready" for the world. People put so much into growing up and how special these grownups are that kids try to make up things or pretend to know more than they do.

Alot of things also come from life exp. people in general do not like to admit they are wrong. Recently, a thirteen-year-old girl I know began to "date" her 17-year-old boyfriend. I tried to warn her that someone my age wouldn't DREAM of dating a 13-year-old girl. She would NOT listen and eventually lost her virginity and found out the guy had another GF who wouldn't put out.

Why not listen to me? Because it's just the facts of life. Your parents didn't listen to their parents and that's how they learned.

Answer 2

So I'm 13.

I sometimes talk down to my parents, but soon after, I regret it. I am one of the few teenagers that fully understand that my parents have been there, done that. I think something that helps the matter is that my mom told me stories about her teenage life.

She skipped class once, and got caught. Had a huge party at the house, and was grounded for a month. Ect. I think those stories kind of steer me away from doing those things because I don't want to get in trouble, and I don't want to lose my parents' trust.

About the lying? She needs to cut it out. They will catch her, no matter how well she lies. So if she doesn't stop on her own, the grounding will stop her.

Plus, my mom has told me at least 3 things about myself I swore were secret and had told NO ONE in the last month or two.

Answer 3

I agree. I'm in middle school, and while it's not like I'm three any more and think that my parents are limitless in there knowledge and strength, I do realize that they do know more, and they have been through much of what this generation with the exceptions of a few things (like cyber bullying and what not.) and besides even if I didn't think that I still can't imagine doing what your sister is doing, after all they are you parents!!! They gave you life! They nurtured you! They DESERVE RESPECT!!!!!!!!!!

I think alot of the reason that teens have those misconceptions though is because when parents have been through it they have had a chance to look at it on a later date witht more perspective on the situation and realize what they were doing was stupid even though it felt so important at the time. So when their kid wants to do something simularly stupid and they are blind to the stupidity as their parents once were, but their parents have already learned from their own mistakes and try to make rules to keep their children from doing the same thing. But since to the younger generation what their doing seems so right at the time they feel that there parents just don't understand them, and since they are obviously right in their own mind they come to the conclusion that their parents have never been through what they are going through because, duh, if they had they would agree. So the kids come to the conclusion that they are right and their parents are wrong, and thus they are smarter than their parents, thats when the disrespect starts.

Answer 4

parents know more than kids? thats no always the case. my mom didn't know what a b0ner was.

Answer 5

Ah but the thing here is even if you tell them why you know better and give them great examples of what will/can happen, they will just think: well you got caught because you are clearly stupid, and I already know I am much cleverer then you.

That's life. Kids do dumb things, ADULTS do dumb things, but we have to remember kids are just kids and we forgive them for the things they do.

I knew better then my parents, they knew better then theirs (presumably why they had to get married at 19 because my mother was pregnant, way to go mom), and I am sure my grandparents knew better then their parents - they just didn't say it in those days.

Just watch what she's doing, if she's talking it's probably just talk and she'll learn. If she doing unwise things, you're older and you might have to step in sometimes. I'm not sure how old you are but you sound like you are plenty old enough to no longer be bound by the kid-code-of-conduct, so you can immediately tell your parents if she is going to do anything really stupid to protect her, and you will be a responsible adult instead of a tell tale kid.

Answer 6

She wants to be older, and she wants her ways, and she's thirteen.

Answer 7

I'm a parent, and I have to agree with you... we do know a lot!  Haha!  And one thing we know, that our kids haven't figured out yet, is that parents are almost always right.  We've all looked back and thought, "Dang, my mom WAS right about that!"  But at 13, you don't have the benefit of that hindsight yet.  And it's hard to really believe something until you've experienced it.

When you're 35 or 40, 13 doesn't seem like that long ago.  You remember it like it was yesterday. But when you're 13, 35 or 40 seems light years away.  Someone that old seems like a different species, so how could they possibly understand you?   And it probably doesn't help when you hear your parents say things like, "When I was your age, things were a lot different!"  or  "WE didn't have cell phones or computers or blah blah blah."  So it sounds like we grew up on a different planet.  But the basic problems of being a teenager haven't changed.  I'm sure our great-great grandparents went through the same things:  "You're not getting in a wagon with that crazy Smith boy, I hear he's got a moonshine still!"  or  "Bessie Lou can show her ankles all she wants, but no daughter of mine is gonna dress like a hooker!"  

Eventually, we all grow up and figure it out. And your sister will, too.  In the meantime, hopefully you and your parents can keep her safe and out of trouble, even if that means making her life "miserable" for a while.  =]

Answer 8

why do parents think the average teen :

is moody

has an attitude

doesn't want to spend time with family

does drugs

only thinks about s*x

doesn't know anything

why?

Answer 9

It comes from being biologically an adult, a fact that has historically usually been recognized, and still treated as an infant, which is a development of the past century.

It's not so much that young people think that older people haven't been there and done that, so much as it is a need to live their own lives, rather than learning ONLY from other people's experiences.

Older people tend to think that just by telling a younger person something is a bad idea, they can really convey what a bad idea it is. The problem is, to someone who has had no bad experiences, there is no reference point. There's nothing to gauge it by. So the instruction has no meaning. I can explain very clearly how to use a computer, but if you don't know what a keyboard, a mouse, or a touchpad are, it's not going to help you very much.

And also, it's frustrating to be told that pretty much everybody knows more about pretty much everything than you do. Not just because it's true - whether it is true or not - but because it makes it sound like you (that is, the young person) know nothing. It devalues what experience you do have - what experiences you have had - which are, after all, all you've got to define your life by. Just because someone else knows MORE than you does not mean you yourself don't know anything.

Try to remember what her perspective is like. Be 13 again and remember how frustrating it is to not be taken seriously just at a time when you're most insecure about yourself and trying to work things out on your own more than you ever have before.

Answer 10

She is a girl of 13 with hormones rushing through her body. TEENAGE YEARS! YOU WENT THROUGH THEM!

You probably did the same thing. It is hormones and yes teenagers think we know better when we obviously don't. But yeah we are still learning and we don't realise that.

By you getting involved is making it worse. Why don't you just keep your opinions to yourself and let her blatantly lie to your father. Its got absolutly nothing to do with you. Its hormones.

Answer 11

Your sister knows that your parents went through everything she's going through now - that's why she's pretending that they don't.  Since she's growing up, she's starting to break the limits on what she can and can't do with your parents to make them mad.

It's perfectly normal - just be nice to her and spend time with her, since it might also be a cry for attention ("I'm doing all this to see if anyone notices/cares!").  She'll grow out of it eventually... I think we've all been there.

Don't you remember what you did to bug your parents when you were that age? ;)