From the Mouths of Babes - Time Magazine Survey of 13 Year Olds

Time Magazine (August 8, 2005) focused on what it is like to be thirteen years old. It is harder being a teen today then it was in the 60s-80s. Our kids are exposed to more and Americans are less churched and more believe that there is no such thing as moral absolutes. Truth is relative to the culture and what everyone else believes is true.

Thirteen year olds had learned some things while watching parent's mistakes. Today's 13-year-olds are less likely to smoke, drink, do drugs, get pregnant, commit a crime or drop out of school then those of their parent's generation of the 1970s.

Time poled 501 thirteen year olds and some of the findings are:

• 67 % think being a teenager is harder to day than it was when their parents were teens.
• 46% believe the U.S. will be a worse place to live by the time they reach their parents age.
• 53% characterize their relationship with their parents as excellent.
• 53% say their parents are very involved in their lives.
• 68% reported that their parents have the right amount of involvement in their lives.
• 85% think their parents are either not too strict or just a little too strict.
• 72% say they have not started dating yet.
• 62% reported that their parents think they should be 16-years-old or older to date.
• 60% believe people should wait until marriage to have sex.