Dr John Coleman
John Coleman is a psychologist with a long-standing interest in adolescence. He has had many different roles in his career, including running a therapeutic community for troubled teenagers, acting as Director of a research centre, advising Government as a civil servant, and holding various academic posts. Most recently he was a Senior Research Fellow in the Department of Education, University of Oxford (2006-2015). His interests include parenting, the digital world, the teenage brain and young people’s health. He has written a number of books on the teenage years, and has an international reputation for his work on adolescence. In 2001 he was awarded the OBE by Queen Elizabeth II for his work on youth.
Useful articles
Parents of teenagers in China
In 2021 I was contacted by a parenting organization in Beijing to tell me that they had arranged for my book “Why won’t my teenager talk to me?” to be translated into Chinese. I was delighted, and not a little surprised. They asked if I would like a copy, and before...
Shortlisted for ‘Best Books for Educators Summer 2021’ awards.
We’re delighted to announce that The Teacher and the Teenage Brain has made the shortlist of Learning Ladders’ ‘Best Books for Educators Summer 2021’ awards. We were shortlisted alongside 40 other books from a longlist of over 100 entries for our dedication to...
The Teacher and The Teenage Brain
Publisher: Routledge Publication Date: 27th May 2021 I wrote this book, “The teacher and the teenage brain”, for two reasons. First, because I believe that knowledge about teenage brain development can make a profound difference to the way adults understand and...
A workshop for Parents
“The teen brain – a workshop for parents” A 40-slide powerpoint presentation: These slides are designed for a 2 hour session. The workshop is designed for parents or carers of teenagers. It would be appropriate for parents or carers of any age teenager during the...
Conversation, not confrontation: how can parents and teenagers learn to talk to each other?
Parents and teenagers need to be able to talk together. Yet in so many families this turns out to be a major problem. Parents feel the teenager won’t listen, and teenagers feel exactly the same: that their parents aren’t listening. One 14 year-old girl...
Social media and teenagers, a practical approach
Is social media damaging the mental health of young people? It’s important to look behind the headlines. There is no doubt that today social media is seen by adults as representing a major threat to young people. There is much debate in the press and in public about...
The STAGE framework: a new approach for parents of teenagers
“Yes, I get quite moody, quite a lot of the time. Like with parents and stuff, they say just do something, and I’d take it a bit too far, and like just storm out of the room, slamming doors.”15 year-old girl. Parents of teenagers need good quality information...
From child to adult, the adolescent period represents one of the greats psychological transitions we experience.