Problem Solving

The literature pertaining to the problem-solving capacity of adolescents is generally focused on conduct disordered or delinquent populations. As stated previously, there is considerable overlap between adolescents who engage in risk-taking behavior and those who have been diagnosed with conduct disorder or termed delinquent. It is therefore fair to assume, for the purposes of this book, that the majority of adolescents included within these populations would also engage in risk behaviors.

Many aggressive adolescents and those with a conduct disorder demonstrate problem-solving deficits. Lochman and Lampron (1986) were interested in the problem-solving characteristics of aggressive and nonaggressive boys. They used means–ends stories containing a problematic interpersonal situation and a conclusion in which the problem no longer existed. The children were asked to provide the middle of the story and later to give any alternative solutions they could generate. The aggressive boys generated fewer verbally assertive solutions to problems, instead showing a preference for actively aggressive solutions.

Social goals may vary in different adolescents. Aggressive adolescents might value control and hostility but place a low value on their interactions with peers and their feelings about those peers. Lochman, Wayland, and White (1993) conducted a study in which they examined the relationship between social goals such as dominance, revenge, avoidance, and affiliation in terms of social problem solving. They found that the boys who valued dominance and revenge had little regard for affiliation. They also had a wide range of delinquent, substance, and behavioral difficulties.