Original scientific paper

Fears in Adolescence

Radka Michalčáková ; Institute for Research on Children, Youth and Family, Faculty of Social Studies, Masaryk University
Lenka Lacinová ; Institute for Research on Children, Youth and Family, Faculty of Social Studies, Masaryk University
Martin Jelínek ; Institute of Psychology, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic

Abstract

Fear is a natural and useful companion of human beings throughout their whole lifespan. The study tries to map the fears of 15-year old adolescents. It is based on data collected as part of the ELSPAC project (European Longitudinal Study of Pregnancy and Childhood). On the basis of the "Cake of Fear" method, subjective responses about the contents of fears were collected. These contents were categorized into 19 general categories, which cover a wide range of the topic. With the number of fears ranging from 0 to 22, respondents reported 5.3 on average. The category Fear of losing someone, fear for somebody/something occupies first position, with fears related to death and concerns about friends and family being most prominent. Generalised fears are ranked second, noticeably represented with fears of failure and the future. The third largest category is the category of school-related fears. Differences in the incidence of fears are discussed regarding gender and developmental stage.

Keywords

fear; adolescence; gender: ELSPAC

Hrčak ID:

39915

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/39915

Publication date:

30.6.2009.

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