No Worries
16x40"
Mixed Media on Board
Painting #198 - In Age of Opportunity,
Steinberg states that the best health education programs are successful at
changing adolescent’s knowledge about risky behaviors but not in altering their
behaviors. He claims that in the USA billions of dollars are spent every year on
programs that teach young people about the dangers of smoking, drugs, drinking,
and having unprotected sex but all have little effect on how young people
actually behave. Most current health programs change what adolescents know but
not how they act. Adolescents need more than information to deter their risky
behaviors because they are at a point in their development where they are
easily aroused and have difficulty controlling their impulses. Programs focused
on helping adolescents build their capacity for self-regulation are much more
effective in reducing their risky behaviors.
My painting depicts a young person who has been raised with
the practice of Mindfulness. He is curious, energetic and playful. The ominous
sky depicts that the dangers of the world are out there but this young person
has the life skill of self-regulation. At any moment he can control his thinking,
emotions and behavior to avoid perilous situations.
