The Reason Why Teenagers Run Awa - Research Paper Example

The Reason Why Teenagers Run Away According to Barri (5), definitions of runaway can vary greatly based upon various criteria from source to source, such as, the duration of time absent from the home, the nature of running away, and parental knowledge of the missing youth’s whereabouts. The runaway youth is generally seen as a minor who leaves home, a living arrangement where there is guardianship, juvenile detention, or another place of residence for a period beyond that which is considered acceptable by those caring for; or whereby the juvenile fails to return home by a reasonable time with no indication that he or she is in harm’s way or prevented from returning (Barri 5). Teenagers run away from their home due to many reasons and the consequences are usually very severe. There are basically five kinds of runaways, though there may be variations and overlapping within: situational, recidivist, street, chronic, and thrown away. Situational runaways constitute the largest group of youths who leave home. They usually are away for a day or two following a quarrel with parents before returning home. Chronic runaways constantly run from home and remain away for longer stretches of time, often progressing to street youth. Recidivists or repeat runaways leave home more than once, sometimes staying with friends, others living on streets or shelters. Studies show that recidivists’ runners are more likely than non-recidivists runawys to leave home due to problems involving family dynamics, substance abuse, transportation, and judicial systems among others. Street youth runaways leave home permanently and as the term suggests, tend to literally live on the streets and must fend for themselves. Some street kids also spend time staying in transitory housing such as shelters or abandoned building, and are most at risk for victimization. Thrown away leave homes as a result of dispute with parents or guardians, or are abandoned. Some thrown away youths also fall into other categories of runaways (Barri, 9). What causes teenagers to run away? A big problem in the American household today is child abuse. Abuse comes in a variety of ways; physical, sexual, and mental. Children who experience abuse are more likely to run away from home than children who are not exposed to it. With any kind of abuse a child goes through it immediately starts to affect them psychologically. Children try to cope with the abuse at first; some are able to push it away while others wear the abuse on their face and it shows to everyone around them. Around the world an estimated forty million children suffer from abuse or neglect and need social and health interventions. In 2006, seven hundred and seventy-seven thousand children were confirmed to be victims of abuse or neglect in the United States, out of these a hundred and forty-two thousand were victims of physical abuse (Jenny, 2). Addiction plays a big role in motivating for adolescents to run away. According to the KidsHealth website, the substance abuse may be present in the teenager himself or in one or both parents (Kathryn, 2). Family members addicted to alcohol and drugs create an impossible home life for a number of teenagers. Many runaway teenagers have personal addiction issues which cause leaving home to continue the alcohol or drug abuse. A report by The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism shows that eighteen million Americans often abuse alcohol or have an alcohol disorder, and most of them are not able to keep jobs due to their alcoholism. Moreover, the institute also stresses that excessive drinking often leads to disagreements with relatives when under the influence (Daniel, 3). A number of runaways fear the reaction of parents and relatives at home to personal issues, such as the need to pursue life as a lesbian, bisexual, or gay, or pregnancy. According to interviews carried out by the National Clearinghouse on Families and Youth with homeless youth revealed that transgendered, lesbian, gay, bisexual as well as teens not sure of their sexual orientation most of the times fail to talk with relatives, experience violence due to their sexual orientations and also have negative peer relationships. These circumstances make running an alternative for a lot of adolescents Girls constitute just about seventy-five percent of the runaway population. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures six percent to twenty-two percent of these runaway girls are pregnant and lack a permanent home (Daniel, 3). Peer pressure, according to Kathryn (3), also plays a part in teenagers running away from their homes. If a teen commits a mistake or does something that leads to fear of punishment or consequences, the teenager’s peers might encourage or suggest running away. If a teenager is lacking effective skills of problem-solving, running away may look like the perfect answer. Rather than approaching a situation with a positive attitude to solve it, the teenager might give in to pressure to run away. It is also possible for a predator to persuade a teen to run, warns the Focus Adolescent Services website (Kathryn, 3). Most of the teenagers run away from home after fighting with their parents or when parents become infuriated with their children after repeated conflict and fights. Between one million, six hundred and two million, eight hundred children, the majority between the ages of twelve and seventeen, run away every year. Studies by the National Runaway Safeline report that nearly half of the runaways list the reason for running as a fight with a parent or guardian. Some parents tell the teenagers to leave the house after disagreements, and these "throwaway" youngsters normally hail from families living in federally funded housing or families on public assistance (Daniel, 4). According to the Royal College of Psychiatrists (4), more than half of couples divorcing in the United States in 2007 had no less than one child aged below sixteen years. This meant that there were more than a hundred and ten thousand children aged below sixteen years when their parents divorced. Twenty percent of those kids were below 5 years old. Nevertheless, many more kids experience parental separation every year that are not incorporated in figures like this, seeing that their parents unmarried (Royal College of Psychiatrists, 4). Many children do not wish for their parents to separate except if the marriage was beset with intense anger and conflict or other sources of depression not appropriate for children. It can damage parent-child relationships, causing lost contact with one parent, intensify conflict between parents, and generate economic hardships. Divorce undoubtedly amplifies the risk that the children will experience behavioral and psychological problems. Troubled children are most likely to develop problems with rage, disobedience, and violation of rules. The child’s performance in school also can suffer. Some of the children become depressed for prolonged periods of time. All these reasons make many children experience a hard time throughout the divorce transition making running away an option (Emery, 4). When teenagers are deprived of their choice of friends it can lead to them running away. It is normally hard for parents to permit bad influences around their kids; however teens are too old to be instructed about whom to associate with. It is much better if the parents open up their home to the children’s friends, and keep an eye on their behaviors there. Normally teenagers are loyal to friends, thus, the more a parent refuses to give approval of a friend, the more a teen will rebel to protect the friend (Yvonne, 5). To any young person, the bedroom is a cave, secure and private, someplace to crawl into, subsequent to being out on the front lines of life. A parent must never enter in a teenagers bedroom to snoop around. This is a desecration to the teenager, and is one of the leading motives for teenagers to run away. Despite the fact that it might appear harmless to the parent, to the teenager it is usually a serious treachery. Teenagers take it to signify parental authoritarianism, loss of control, as well as injustice. Bear in mind that teens usually have a strong sense of justice, thus will go to extremes to defend it. Once a parent pokes around a teenager’s bedroom, going through personal stuffs, reading diaries, as well as other private information, the young person no longer feels guarded by the bedroom. Youngsters require privacy to sort out their swirling feelings. They want to feel they can get away from their parents snooping (Yvonne, 5). Teenagers who have been neglected and are deprived of emotional as well as financial support from their family members can also lead to running away. Mentally ill teenagers may end up being homeless since they lack the access to caring housing as well as other treatment services. Parents, who have been laid off and lost their housing, may become homeless along with their kids. However, due to dangers of the street as well as shelter availability, a lot of teenagers split from their parents (Kathryn, 5). Consequences of teenagers running away from home The dangers of a runaway lifestyle are obvious. Teenagers who are homeless spend their time walking the streets in search of money and food. Teenagers are minors, they have not attained the legal age to work thus this means that many teens resort to theft for survival. Others find it easier to sell drugs or sex for food, money, and shelter. However, this places them in danger of physical abuse, murder as well as rape. Homeless teenagers usually live in a continuous state of alert. Others make a decision of joining a gang assuming the members of the gang will look after them. On the contrary, gang activity is just as dangerous given that a lot of them want new members to steal, commit murder, or fight so as to be initiated and to establish status within the group (Marcelina, 6). There are usually many shelters in large cities but they fill up very quickly. A homeless teenagers bed of perhaps a blanket typically winds up in the woods, in a park, highway underpass, or under a bridge. The winter creates bigger problems particularly in colder climates. Since the homeless teenagers lack sufficient warm shelter, they can become sick, suffer from hypothermia, or freeze until they die (Marcelina, 6). Works Cited Barri, R. (2010).Street Kids: The Lives of Runaway and Thrown Away Teens. New york; Indie Digital Publishing. David, R. (2014). Reasons Why Teenagers Run Away. Modernmom.com. Web 21 April 2014. Kathryn, H. (2014). Reasons Why Teenagers Run Away. Globalpost.com. Web 21 April 2014. Laumann-Billings, L. &. Emery, R. (2000). Distress among young adults from divorced families. Journal of Family Psychology, 14, 671-687. Marcelina, H. (2014). Homeless Teenagers. .Lovetoknow.com. Web 21 April 2014. Royal College of Psychiatrists. (2014). Divorce or separation of parents - the impact on children and adolescents: information for parents, carers and anyone who works with young people. Rcpsych.ac.uk. Web 21 April 2014. Yvonne J. (2008). The Biggest Reasons Teenagers Run Away. Yahoo.com, 13 September 2008. Web 21 April 2014. Read More