Your Rebel Daughter Has a Cause

The whole notion of rebelling should be taking on a new light as you read through this chapter. This isn't to say that girls don't rebel against authority, social forces, or their moms. But much of what we loosely termed rebellion before, may, in fact, be something else.

Adolescence is a time of idealism and soul searching for young women. Where and how they fit into the cosmos is very much on their minds. Some experts describe adolescent rebellion as a rebellion against the "archaic aspects of childhood."

Often when daughters do things their moms find objectionable, they are rebelling against being treated like a child who doesn't have any right to their own judgment. These girls are not, in fact, rebelling against parental authority but showing confidence in themselves and making decisions to determine what fits into their adult value system.

However, some acts that are fueled to get your goat, unceasingly defy limits, and are based on poor decision making qualify as good old-fashioned, unqualified acts of rebellion. Now that you know there are different kinds of rebellious actions, try to figure out where your daughter fits in.

Excerpted from:

Excerpted from The Complete Idiot's Guide to Mothers and Daughters © 2001 by Rosanne Rosen. All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. Used by arrangement with Alpha Books, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

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