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Article Review
Jamie Knopf
Adolescent Egocentrism: A Contemporary View
In this article, the report of a study conducted to find if the trends of adolescent
egocentrism in 1967 were the same in adolescents today. Using Chapter 6 from Santrock’s text
about cognitive developmental approaches, it is found that the study found the adolescent
egocentrism to still be true today and found even more in late adolescence.
Article Summary
In 1967, the idea of imaginary audience occurring in adolescents was defined. In this
article, a study was conducted to find out if the same patterns of imaginary audience still occur in
adolescents now as they did in adolescents in 1967. In the article, it states that the hypothesis was
that the study would find, “a decrease in egocentrism with increasing age” (Schwartz, Maynard,
& Uzelac, 2008, p. 441).
There were 2,390 adolescents who participated in the study—all from middle, junior and
senior high schools and three colleges. The participants were from suburban, urban and rural
populations as well. The study was done by using Elkind and Bowen’s Imaginary Audience
Scale (IAS) and Elkind’s Personal Fable (PF) scale in a questionnaire format.
The study found that egocentrism actually was higher in late adolescence than in early
adolescence. It is suggested that the environment change of attending college was a reason for
this increase of egocentrism in late adolescence. It is believed to be a coping mechanism for late
adolescents—which can be the reason for risky behavior and an attitude of entitlement in late
adolescence.
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Comparison of Article and Text
In both, the article and the text, the idea of egocentrism in adolescents is explained in
similar ways. The text explains that adolescents may feel as though, “they are the main actors
and all others are the audience” (Santrock, 2008, p.223). The article backs up the text and
explains that adolescents believe, “that those around them are as concerned and focused on their
appearance as they themselves are” (Schwartz et al., 2008, p.442).
Both the article and the text agree that adolescent egocentrism can be a reason for the
appearance of risky behavior in adolescence. Santrock writes that, “the sense of uniqueness and
invincibility that geocentricism generates is responsible for some of the seemingly reckless
behavior of adolescents” (Santrock, 2008, p.223). The article agrees with the text and says that
adolescents with higher scores of egocentrism are, “at more risk…for a range of health
compromising behaviors such as binge drinking and unprotected sexual encounters” (Schwartz et
al., 2008, 447).
The difference between the article and the text is that the study in the article found that
adolescent egocentrism is higher in late adolescence than it is in early adolescence. The text
never specifically says anything about whether it is higher or lower in either stage. But for the
most part, the article and the study are in agreement in the topic of adolescent egocentrism.
Application
As a person who works closely with adolescents, I found the information in the article
and the text to apply greatly to my work. The sense of entitlement is shown in the adolescents
that I minister to at my church. This information helps me realize that it is developmentally
appropriate and it also may be a coping mechanism to their changing world.
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This information would be very useful to remember when working with adolescents and
their families. When “counseling” parents, I can explain adolescent egocentrism to them and
help them to understand their teen better. Also because of egocentrism, many adolescents believe
no one understands them. This can help parents understand why their teen believes that and help
families function more effectively.
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References:
Santrock, J. (2008). A topical approach to life-span development, 4th Edition. New York:
McGraw Hill.
Schwartz, P.D., Maynard, A.M., Uzelac, S.M., (2008). Adolescent Egocentrism: A
Contemporary View. Adolescence 43 (171). 442-448. Retrieved November 16, 2010 from
EbscoHost (Family & Society Studies Worldwide).