A Developmental Method to Analyze the Personal Meaning Adolescents Make of Risk and Relationship: The Case of "Drinking"

Abstract

The goal of this article is to demonstrate the application of a psychosocial developmental framework-and interpretive method of analysis-to data gathered through in-depth interviews. The article applies this analysis in the context of a case comparative design, drawing on interviews with two 15-year-old Icelandic boys who drank alcohol frequently, but in different ways and with different consequences. This article describes the utility of a developmental approach to the analysis of the risks adolescents take, especially to their health. It illuminates the parallels between the levels of awareness individuals have of the risks they take, and the quality of the meaning they make of their close social relationships. It demonstrates the role a cultural perspective plays in the developmental interpretation of the data. Finally, the article touches on the implications of this kind of analysis for psychosocial prevention practices and policies.