3.V.(a)    Generation Gap of teenage kids relating to their parents is wider than ever - reduced Family Unit Cohesion

Traditionally teenagers' Lifestyle Behaviour has varied from their parents in musical tastes, fashion, hair styles and "liberal v conservative" politics.  More recently a spike in teenage binge drinking, particularly by young girls, and teenagers taking illicit drugs most noticeably 'Ice' (crystal meth) which is more evident in the lower socio-economic communities, is widening the Generation Gap of older and younger family members understanding and relating with each other.  

Three other contributors to this widening Generation Gap which are also more pronounced in lower socio-economic areas is -

(i)         parents inability to communicate via the Internet, U-tube, IPODs etc evidencing more kids viewing their parents as Luddites;

(ii)        parents struggling to make ends meet - over the last 20 years the distribution of income has moved markedly away from lower and middle income earners and towards the top of companies [ie Senior Execs of eg. Commonwealth Bank are earning a materially greater share of the pie than a bank teller, compared to 20 years ago]; and

(iii)       problem gambling, particularly playing poker machines. 

The economic cost and lost productivity due to teenagers rebelling against societal norms and abnormal behaviour by their parents, has never been more pronounced.  Recreational Drug Use and problem gambling at the parental level are often associated with escapism due to dissatisfaction with reduced Family Unit Cohesion from a widening Generation Gap. 

Following the tragic death of 2 year old, Dean Shillingworth, whose body was found on Sat 20 Oct 2007 in a suitcase in pond at Mandurama Reserve, Ambarvale, in south-western Sydney, it came to light that a report commissioned by DOCS last year claimed that at least 20 per cent of children would be reported for child protection concerns before they reached adulthood. 

The magnitude of Family Unit Cohesion has manifested itself more prominently in the USA where youth street gang violence is a major problem.  Below are URLs to books and journals by respected criminologists, gang researchers and community developers with various remedies:

*          "Reducing Youth Gang Violence: The Little Village Gang Project in Chicago" Irving Spergel 2006 which details a community-based model to reduce gang problems (incl. violence and illegal drug activity).

*          "Promising Strategy for Youth Gang Violence" Raskin/Aaron Sept 2005 which promotes job training has as a powerful strategy to reduce youth gang violence.

A patent difference evident to anyone who holidays in the U.S. is the lack of social infrastructure such as council 50m swimming pools and sporting ovals in the USA.  Fortunately, Australia doesn't have the magnitude of the fallout in Family Unit Cohesion that the U.S. experiences.  However, that fallout is materially higher than Australia would like.

As recent as thirty years ago the mutual interest in sports between parents and their children such as football, cricket and going to the beach, was materially more aligned.  Today alignment of Lifestyle Behaviour due to similar sporting interests is much less. 

Merit exists in achieving greater common interest to Narrow Generation Gap Between Parents And Their Teenage Kids through parents rekindling Youthful Exuberance to become passionate about a REA, akin to playing in the great outdoors with their mates which their kids can relate to.