According to the research, girls who experience early puberty are at a greater risk of developing aggressive behavioral traits over the years, like fighting, teasing, substance abuse and rumor mongering.
However, the researchers very clearly stated that this was true only incase of girls who lacked a happy, strong relationship with their parents, thus blaming parental neglect also, to be partly responsible for their behavioral extremities.
Researchers studied a total of 330 fifth-grade girls. The girls were asked questions based on the following points of consideration –
• frequency of aggressive behavior,
• fighting at school, inflicting injuries etc,
• time of having their first menstrual cycle,
• Relationship with their mothers – affection, doing things together, discussing issues like violence, sex and tobacco etc with parents.
Parents too were asked to answer questions based on seven different factors, to give the researchers an idea of how well informed the parents were about their children spending their free time or for that matter, how much the parents knew their children.
Around one fourth of these girls reported starting their periods at least one year before the average age.It was found that these were the girls who were more likely to show aggressive behavior. But, the research at the same time also found that early puberty has different effects on different girls.
According to Dr. Sylvie Murg, lead researcher, University of Albama at Birmingham; teenage girls who enjoyed a good relationship with their parents and had parents who helped them talk out their problems, nurtured them, took care of them and were more involved in their upbringing in general, were actually protected from the behavioral problems expected to develop with early onset of puberty.
"Our study indicates that early puberty does not affect all girls the same way," she said.
The researchers have however not been able to point out clearly the reason why early puberty effects behavior of the teens, a change which lasts through the teenage right into adulthood and becomes more or less a part of the personality.
Although they have brought out some factors which might have had an effect –
• Girls having early onset of puberty are more likely to spend time with older boys, which at times might prove to be a negative aspect of influence on them.
• Due to difference in their physical and emotional development they are more prone to social pressure.
• Often there are non physical forms of aggression also seen in these girls, like not communicating much.
Thus, according to Murg parental care and involvement play an important role in protecting girls, who mature earlier than others. Here are a few things researchers feel parents must keep in mind while dealing with their adolescent daughters:
• Parental monitoring is very important in this age.
• Communication and nurturing too hold an important place.
• Warm and supportive parents can build a better relationship with their daughters and help them open up to their parents.
• It is necessary to teach the girls and prepare them of all the physical as well as emotional changes their bodies would undergo with early puberty.
• Talking it out is the best policy. It is advisable to teach kids practical way outs from situations like – peer pressure to drink, smoke or have sex.
• Often telling own experiences might prove helpful, at least in breaking ice if nothing else.
"As adults, early-maturing girls demonstrate lower academic and occupational achievement and report lower relationship quality and life satisfaction," the researchers said. “It is thus important to identify protective factors that may mitigate negative effects of early maturation on girls'' adjustment,” they added. Hence, they clearly outlined the importance and role of good parenting to help sail them through these troubled years smoothly.
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