More Troubled Teens – East or West???

In America we love our freedom and we love our free time --but for our kids, free time can be time to make bad decisions which in turn could cost them their freedom!

The idea of the rebellious troubled teen may be seen as a cliché or as an iconic movie screen character (think Breakfast Club) but when it's real, it’s one that is more real in Western culture than in Asian.

Not sure why but a Penn State study compared youth crime rates in the U.S. to those of Taiwan.

The study concludes that eastern cultures are more “collectivist,” with little separation between generations and more supervision of the young by their elders.

In western countries like America, young people have less supervision and more personal freedom.  Researchers conclude that free time equates to more opportunity to make bad decisions that can lead to trouble with the law.