Help for Parents of Struggling Teens

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Adirondack Leadership ExpeditionsAdirondack Leadership Expeditions
Adirondack Leadership Expeditions is a character development wilderness program for troubled teens that promotes personal growth through a focus on insight-oriented experiences. The forested, mountain setting removes urban distractions and simplifies options to help students gain insight into their core values and accept responsibility for their choices. Our wilderness program's nurturing approach helps participants address personal issues, achieve success in a safe environment, and develop their leadership potential.

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"Social" Bullying Comes From Imitating Parents and Peers

A Canadian study involving twins found that the people in a child's life can influence her to become a "psychological bully" and that such behaviors are not genetically based.

"Children who hang out with socially aggressive friends seem to pick up this behavior even when they don't have a genetic disposition to be socially aggressive," according to lead author, Mara Brendgen. She and her colleagues are trying to determine the causes of non-physical social aggression, including behaviors such as teasing, rumor-spreading, and social exclusion. They studied more than 400 pairs of 7-year-old twins and found that 77 percent of the time, social aggression correlated with similar behaviors among the friends and adults in the child's life.

Parents tend to overlook bullying behaviors when they are not physical, according to Brendgen. "For the victims, (psychological) bullying is as bad as being hit by someone or pushed by someone, and it can lead to suicide ideation," she said. "Psychological harassment in the workplace is the number one cause for sick leave."

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