by Barbara Webber

Created on: November 18, 2009   Last Updated: November 22, 2009

I have been a high school English teacher for 9 years. I not only work with lazy teenagers everyday, I was one. Before we examine how to deal with a lazy teen, we need to know a little about the psychology of a teenager. There are reasons why teens behave the way they do, and believe it or not, it's not to make you crazy.

In 2004, a study by James Bjork, a neuroscientist, used MRI scans to study the brains of teens and young adults. Bjork reported in the

Journal of Neurosciencethat even though both teen and adult brains showed a high desire to win, a different area of the brain lit up much less in the teen brains. The test consisted of having both teens and adults play a game with a monetary reward as the motivation to win. "...we found that what was markedly deficient in the adolescents [was the region in the brain responsible for motivation, the ventral striatum]. This is despite the fact that questionnaires after the test indicated that the adults and the adolescents were equally happy and excited about the prospect of winning [money]. But the adolescent brains didn't show in the actual circuitry and their activation in their brain."

(Read the full article here: http://www.sciencentral.com/articles/view.php3?type= article&article_id=218392370)

What this study tells us is that teens may be predisposed to be lazy. This explains why sometimes, no matter how sweet the reward offered may be, you just can't get your teenager to do what he or she needs to do. Don't despair though, this doesn't mean that there aren't things you can do; it simply gives you the science to keep your sanity in those moments you are at your wit's end.

So what's a parent to do?

Responsibility is one thing that helps young people. If your teenager has no responsibilities at home, then you are encouraging his or her laziness. This should start at a very young age, even toddlers can learn to clean up after themselves. However, if you have not started already given some of the household responsibilities to your teen, it is not too late. Teens should be doing their own laundry, feeding the pets, taking out trash, cleaning their own rooms, dishes, even preparing dinner on a regular basis. That's not to say that they should do all of these things every day, but a schedule should be made as to when your young adult is supposed to complete which tasks. They should especially be responsible for the things that most pertain to them. Like if they have a car, they are responsible for the maintenance

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