Our Third Entry on Chapter 9

Jessica Nunez wrote our latest entry on chapter 9. Enjoy!

She wrote:

In Chapter 9, Elkind describes the various ways children respond to stress and the factors that may contribute to it. The factors that contribute to the way children react to stress are the amount of stress that is put upon them, their outlook on the stress situation they are in, and the different coping methods available to them. Due to these factors, the way a child deals with stress is completely unpredictable. I think that he is correct with believing children deal with stress in different ways. I have witnessed some children who fall apart when under stress, and other children who rise above their stress like an adult would. Children who rise above their stress could be growing up too fast. They should not even be stressing at such a young age.

The next thing Elkind addresses is Free-Floating Anxiety, which is unexplained fear that causes the child to feel restless, irritated, and unable to concentrate. Free-Floating Anxiety is considered to be a common response to separation and divorce. This type of stress affects the child's school behavior as well. A study showed that children from one-parent homes had lower attendance and achievement compared to children from two-parent homes. I do believe that divorce causes children’s school performance to decrease. They might be worried about issues at home rather than the lesson they should be learning in the classroom. In reality, school should be the main focus in a child's life.

Sometimes I feel like all the stress I am undergoing is due to problems that may be occurring at home. However, unrelieved stress in adults may be the result of what is known as job burnout. Job burnout occurs when someone grows tired of the same routine every day. Children undergo the same thing but it is called school burnout. In the study of job burnout, there were five stages identified as the honeymoon, fuel shortage, chronic symptoms, crisis and hitting the wall. All of these stages are about the same for school burnout. The school burnout may be caused by the child being dissatisfied with school, causing them to lose interest in it. The end result of that lost interest will be accomplishing less in school.

In order to respond to stress in a positive way, one of the following five qualities must be present. The first one is social competence. Young people seem to be relaxed when they around their peers. The second one is impression management. This is how the young person presents himself in public. Self-confidence is important when dealing with stress because they need to have faith they could make it through their situation. Another quality that affects the way a child reacts to stress is independence. When they can think for themselves, it shows that they are not affected by other people's opinions. The last quality to affect stress in a positive way is achievement. When a child focuses on a certain task rather than their stress, it gives them the opportunity to feel accomplished. I know from experience that these qualities do help us respond to stress in a positive way. One example is that, when I am around my family and friends, all my problems seem to be lifted just by their company. I think that all of these qualities would really help turn children’s daily stress into something positive, and enable them to live a less stressful life.