Most popular coming-of-age movies don’t reflect the true challenges of adolescence, suggests new research. An analysis led by Kate Stewart, a Ph.D. student in communication at The Ohio State University, found that films that feature teen protagonists tend to depict experiences incongruent to those that real-life adolescents face. Unlike a typical high school student, protagonists in movies, for example, are rarely shown to struggle with the physical aspects of puberty, and typically excel at initiating romantic relationships.
