We have been talking about critical thinking and decision making. One area in which our teen needs to use critical thinking relates to dating! Attraction and hormones tend to rule the decisions our teen makes in this area, not careful thinking about the person he or she may be "talking to" or dating.
Due diligence involves getting to know a person - his values, his likes/dislikes, and his history. Dating is about getting to know another person - and most teens will "talk to " someone via text-messaging or cell phone conversations for a time before actually dating.
Help your teen think about the things he or she should ask about during this "talking" phase. Many teens won't think about some important topics. Some topics you might consider discussing would be as follows: Who is in the teen's family? How does he get along with family members? Does he attend school regularly? What extra-curricular activities does he like? Does he go to church? These are questions your teen might want to ask along with the usual type of questions as to which music does he like, food he likes, etc. Your teen might know a lot of little details about a potential boyfriend or girlfriend without know the big details.
Help your teen think about what he or she needs to discuss with potential love interests. After all, Valentine's Day is just around the corner.
Dr. Debra
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