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Aaron Esman's Adolescence and Culture is an informative and provocative book. It is well worth reading by those interested in the interplay of adolescence and culture: how a culture is expressed by its adolescents and how adolescents have an impact on their culture.
Esman begins by addressing the longstanding debate about whether adolescence is a cultural invention or a biological necessity. The position he takes is that the form and nature of what we here think of as adolescence certainly have not been the norm throughout history. He sees adolescence as a developmental phase to be distinguished from puberty, a person's need to adapt to puberty, and society's need to socialize those going through puberty. Esman posits that our protracted form of adolescence is neither necessary nor within the range of what is typical in social organization.
In tackling the notions of “adolescent turmoil” and “the generation gap,” other subjects of frequent debate among adolescent theorists, Esman sides with those who regard both notions as myths