Extract

Introduction

Adolescence is the transition between childhood and adulthood and is full of specific developmental tasks. The most important ones for early adolescence include embracing the gender social role, accepting one’s own body and effectively using it, forming new and more mature relationships with peers, as well as gaining independence from parents and other adults (Brzezińska, 2000, Liberska, 2007). According to Lewin, adolescence is a transitional phase, characterized by changing group affiliation. The young person is not unambiguously identified by the people in her or his immediate environment – he or she is neither still a child nor already an adult. This leads to uncertainty, loss of orientation, conflicts and tensions which lead to changes in mood and behavior (Karmolińska, 2009). However, according to Obuchowska, adolescence is also a time of intense intellectual development, strengthening emotional ties and an unprecedented increase in vitality and psychological resources. This is why many adolescents sail through this period without crises and turmoil – they do experience difficulties, but they cope with them successfully (Obuchowska, 2005).

The aforementioned developmental tasks which must be faced by the adolescent, in combination with the necessity of coping with violent neurohormonal changes, make this period in human development exceptionally difficult and full of perils (Petersen, Compas, Brooks-Gunn, Stemmler, Ey, Grant, 1993, Oleszkowicz, Senejko, 2011). Among these perils are mood disorders, which include sadness, dejection, hopelessness, sense of worthlessness, and losing interest in various activities and social relationships. Every person in various circumstances...