Adolescent Interview

Observation #4
Class/section: FHS 1500-400
Name: Matilde Olvera
Assignment: Observation #4
Background Information
Persons age: 17
Fictitious name: Betty
Location: South Salt Lake
Brief Description: I have seen this girl before since she is the niece of one of my friends,
but I did not know her.
Physical Development
Betty is a 17-year-old. She is mixed Mexican and White. She is 53 tall. Her father is from
Mexico City, Mexico. and her mother is from Taylorsville, Utah. She identifies herself as
Latina since her features make her look Latina. She is tall and thin. She has been in sports
since she was very young. She has been swimming for 12 years. She has stopped
swimming due to school, but she runs now. Betty says that her swimming coach is the
person who told her how important in to be in good shape. She says that sometimes she
feels bad because some of her friends are not as athletic as she is, and they have difficulty
when exercising in PE classes. To her, it confirms what her coach told her about being
fit. She cares a lot about her looks; thats why she works out so hard. She says she does
not work out to like other people but to like to herself. In the textbook, we find that a
persons idea of how his or her body looks (Berg, 2014, p. 328).
Bettys physical development has been different from other girls. She had her first
menstrual period when she was eight years old. She was scared when that happened.
She bled just one time, and the next year again just one time until she started having a
regular menstrual period when she was twelve. Her mom took her to the doctor, and the
doctor said that having her period at the age of eight was not common but it happens.
According to the textbook, The average age of menarche among normal weight girls is
about 12 years, 4 months (Berg, 2014, p. 316).

Cognitive Development
Betty has a GPA from 3 to 3.3, depending on the year, but not higher or lower than
that. She likes science, but she is not good at math. Her favorite class is PE class. She
is a talented girl; she plays three different musical instruments. She says she is really
good in English because she used to read a lot when she was little. She does not know
what she wants to study yet, but she wants to do something related to science. According
to the book, One hallmark of formal operational thought is the capacity to think of
possibility, not just reality. (Berg, 2014, p. 331).

Social/ Emotional Development

Betty is an extremely extroverted adolescent. She is LDS, and her dad is the
bishop at her family ward. According to the textbook, religion is considered very important
by 55 percent of U.S. high school seniors in 2009 (Berg, 2014, p. 357).
Betty talks a lot. She has many friends, but most of them are boys. She says she
identifies better with them. I asked her why she does not have many girlfriends, and she
said that girls are jealous, and they tend to not be honest when she asks their opinion on
how she looks in a certain outfit. She said Most of the times, they will tell you you look
bad when you look good and vice versa. That wont happen with boys. According to the
textbook, adolescent egocentrism is a characteristic of adolescent thinking that leads
young people to believe in their own uniqueness, and to imagine that other people also
focused on them.
I asked her if she has a boyfriend. She says she does not have one. She goes out
with a boy who she likes, but they are not exclusive.
During her life, Betty has felt discriminated due to her skin color and her Mexican
looks. Since her mom is white and she looks Latina, she has been asked if she is adopted.
She gets annoyed when she is asked this question. She takes it personally, and she acts
defensive. She said, Why they do not accept me how I am? How about If I were adopted
wouldnt they talk to me? She feels that she doesnt fit in the high school she is attending.
She says people there are racist and ignorant. Betty gets surprised that some girls at her
school claim to be charitable and talk about helping in other countries. Betty wonders if
they dont know there are many children in need here in their neighborhood. Betty also
hates that girls from her school arent grateful for the things that they have. She said that
she attended an elementary school for refugees, and there she realized how blessed she
is having a roof and food to eat. She also felt rejected there because of her looks; she
was asked if she was undocumented. Those things made her scared because she didnt
know what could happen to her if she was, but she didnt know. She asked her mom, and
her mom explained to her she should be fine there. According to the textbook, Bullying
increases, physical appearance becomes more important, status symbols are displayed.
(Berg, 2014, p. 343).

Reference list
Berger, K.S.(2014). Invitation to the life span (2nd ed.). NY: Worth Publishers.