The discussion concerning the interplay between biological and sociocultural forces during adolescence should include still another adolescence-deepening problem. This problem is a result of the cultural interpretation of sexual maturation during the teen years. The American culture imposes sexual impotency and "neuterness" at a time when the young have just achieved sexual potency and are characterized by intense sexual tensions. From a biological point of view, the vast majority of adolescents are just as capable of the reproductive act and are just as much in need of release from erotic tensions as the adult. This implies that while he is sexually "adult," socially he is not yet considered adult. This cultural norm appears in legal context in most states restricting independent decision-making in regard to marriage for the young man under 21 years of age and for the young woman under 18 years. Parents, being social adults in charge of their "minor" offspring, have the authority to either give or withhold permission for marriage under these age requirements.
The social immaturity ascribed to teen-agers has serious implications for their sex life. The publicly proclaimed American folkways and mores do not allow a young adolescent to express his sexual urges and cravings, and for all practical purposes, in the eyes of the public he is still "sexless." Any sexual expression, be it heterosexual, homosexual, or autoerotic, is looked upon with strong disapproval. Consequently, the young individual faces almost total prohibition of sexual expression. On the cultural-ideal level, spontaneous nocturnal emission is the only permissable release of sexual tension. Although within the realm of the permitted, since uncontrollable, the nocturnal emission nevertheless falls under the taboo topics and is considered an embarrassing issue that is outside "respectable" conversation. However, the large majority of young adolescents have been exposed to enough inciting suggestions by the mass media and are sufficiently under the influence of their "knowledgeable" peers that sexual release usually does not remain limited to nocturnal emission.
Since the various types of sexual behavior are in violation of particularly sensitive and stringent cultural norms, feelings of guilt and shame are probable for many teen-agers in American society. Knowing that they have violated standards which the adult world imposes upon them, they develop a strong sense of alienation. Young people cannot help but gather from the forbidding and secretive atmosphere surrounding sexual questions that violation of the sexual codes will brand them as unacceptable to most adults.
Intense feelings of shame and guilt are surprisingly effective in ultimately generating feelings of rejection and hatred against those causing these unpleasant emotions. It seems to be a principle of human interaction that persons who feel rejected eventually generate feelings of rejection toward the original source. Ultimately, a reinforcing vicious cycle forms between the rejector and the rejectee. This holds especially true when the parties involved are collectivities, since feelings of rejection toward outsiders thrive best and most vigorously if an in-group supports and rewards such resentful and hostile attitudes.
The feelings of rejection which teenagers perceive because of their sexual attitudes and activities are in this way transformed into feelings of belonging to their peer group, which accepts them as they are. In essence, then, adolescents do not feel accepted in the adult world and therefore tend to set up their own world wherein they can act more comfortably, according to their biological maturity. They establish, thereby, an environment that gives them license for enactment of biological adulthood in spite of the denial of social adulthood.
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