
Adolescents: Behavior Change Tools That Actually Work on Teens
In this Yale lecture from Everyday Parenting: The ABCs of Child Rearing, Dr. Alan Kazdin addresses how the core behavior-change tools taught throughout the course apply to teenagers, who can seem resistant to techniques that work well with younger children. Kazdin explains how praise, attending, and other reinforcement strategies still function with adolescents when adapted to their developmental stage and desire for autonomy. The lecture highlights the adjustments parents need to make in tone, framing, and consistency to reach teens effectively without resorting to conflict or control. It marks a shift in the course toward adolescent-specific applications, building on the reinforcement and behavior-shaping principles established in earlier lectures focused on younger children.