Many parents start to worry when their children turn twelve-thirteen years old. Obedient and exemplary boys and girls become rude, impudent, and often deny everything that they were taught at home. Of course, there are children who, in their transitional years, only please their parents, but there are too few of them. Adolescence is a crucial period because the majority of development related to the physical and psychological state of a child occurs during these years (Curtis, 2015).
For these reasons, I believe it would be more relevant to meet with Seung-Hui Cho when he was at the age of fifteen. During his adolescent years, he might have had some disturbing external influence which resulted in the mass shooting. Approaching Cho when he was fifteen would allow me as a social worker to alleviate his emotional struggles and prevent him from doing anything harmful both to himself and society.
Most teenagers cease to communicate with their parents actively during their adolescence years and choose to spend more time with their friends instead. Parents, however, are still the primary source of information about their children. Cho’s friends and teachers can also be contacted to obtain additional data on how he behaves at school, what he usually talks about, and if he feels depression or anxiety. It is always better if social workers understand what sorts of challenges adolescents go through when talking to teenagers, so I would need to learn about the common problems of adolescents.
Because Cho is from South Korea, he might have been having difficulties after moving to the United States. Common challenges are missing old friends, school, environment, and the language barrier (Presbitero, 2016). Foreign children may also find themselves experiencing cultural shock because of differences in food, customs, and climate. These issues are not easy to overcome without adequate preparation and support. That is why it is important to hold regular interventions with a qualified social worker.
There are three questions I would ask from Cho, and all of them deal with Cho’s physical and emotional state. The first question is, “How is your adjustment going on after moving to the United States?” The second question is, “How often do you think about your friends in South Korea?” And the last question is, “Is there anything specific you do not like in your current social environment?” These questions would allow me to understand better what Cho is feeling and learn about the problems he is facing.
It is crucial to build a trustful relationship between me as a social worker and Cho. It would facilitate the effectiveness of our communication and let me obtain as much valuable information as possible from him. He must feel safe at the time of intervention so the environment must be suitable: warm, comfortable, and relaxing. Any item that might be potentially disturbing should be excluded.
Should there be any suspicion that the child is having suicidal thoughts, or intentions to harm anybody, a thorough program must be developed to aid Cho. This is what needs to be explored and carefully studied: whether Cho has any harmful purposes. There is a higher chance of helping him in the early stages. The information must also be obtained on when exactly and after what events depressive thoughts started to occur.
A teenager goes through many problems that are typical for this age group. Usually, issues are resolved over time by themselves, but some children need additional attention. Depression, anxiety, loneliness, and anger are only some of the potential problems that arise during adolescence. These problems may lead to more serious dilemmas, and in the case of Cho, mass shooting and killing of people. With proper intervention, however, these destructive issues are possible to avoid.
References
Curtis, A. C. (2015). Defining adolescence. Journal of Adolescent and Family Health, 7(2), 1-39.
Presbitero, A. (2016). Culture shock and reverse culture shock: The moderating role of cultural intelligence in international students’ adaptation. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 53(1), 28-38.