We're just having fun. Sometimes we get caught up in whatever we're doing and forget to be courteous. However, whenever my friends and I are hanging out in a public place, we make sure to straighten things out if we fiddled with some items in a store. This is a totally different story when we're hanging out at each other's houses...but anyway, we know we have to respect other people. I think saying teens are messy is a bit of a generalization--sure, some teens leave messes, but most of us try to put back things as we found them.
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Name : Alice, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Asian, Religion : Christian, Age : 16, City : Scarsdale, State : NY Country : United States, Education level : Less than High School Diploma, Social class : Upper middle class, Nowadays teenagers are 'left to their own devices' a lot of times, even from an earlier age. Two income families and one parent households leave kids without a parent a lot of the time to give them attention and make sure they have a strong value base. In other words: No one is teaching these kids respect and consideration, because no one is home.
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Name : Linda30192, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 35, City : Anchorage, State : AK Country : United States, Occupation : mom, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, I'm a teenager, and I've never done that. I've never met anyone who has ever done that, and I've never seen anyone do that. Rudeness exists at every age level--it isn't confined to teenagers.
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Name : NE23949, Gender : F, Age : 19, City : Binghamton, State : NY Country : United States, I don't understnad why you would assume all teenages do this. Just because a select minority of us do that doesn't mean that we are all like that. Me and my friends are all very respectful of people and their belongings... as are 95% of teens...as for the ones who do these things THEY NEED TO GROW UP.
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Name : Rachael, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 17, City : Fond du Lac, State : WI Country : United States, Occupation : Photographer, Education level : Less than High School Diploma, Social class : Middle class, I apologize for the actions of those individuals but i must tell all teens don't act like that. I find that when in public i am very classy. It is wrong to say that and put us all in one general grouping. Some adults act ignorant in stores too it depends on that person.
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Name : teenager24887, Gender : F, Race : Black/African American, Age : 14, City : baltimore, State : MD Country : United States, Education level : Less than High School Diploma, Social class : Middle class, We don't do it to be rude, but typically us teenagers have very limited money. Because of this, we generally make sure that the thing we are looking to buy is REALLY the thing that we want. As far as opening packages goes, the way we, or at least I, see it is that the stores/corporations have so much money, that if we open something then so what! It's not like it is going to cause the company to go bankrupt. I work in retail and I know exactly what you are talking about but I don't get upset by it. Also, it's not just teenagers, I see people of ALL ages doing the same thing.
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Name : Michael, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Gay, Race : American Indian, Religion : Atheist, Age : 19, City : Norfolk, State : VA Country : United States, Occupation : Student, I do understand what you are saying because I too have seen teens doing this. However, just as often I see adults doing it as well. In fact, in my town it is much more so the adults. Yes, they dont play with things like the teenagers do, but all the time I see them opening packages to sample them or to get a better look at something when there is a clear picture on the front or it is even contained in clear plastic. I understand your point of view and somewhat agree, yet I would ask you to be aware that adults do it as well.
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Name : Liz S., Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Hispanic/Latino (may be any race), Age : 16, City : Pioneer, State : CA Country : United States, Occupation : Student, Education level : High School Diploma, Social class : Middle class, This is hardly a new phenomenon. Many adults 'acted out' against 'the system' as teens. The kids who do these things (and certainly not all teens do) do them for several reasons. They may simply be bored, and tearing up a store seems like a harmless thrill. They may be poor, and have come to resent stores full of cool stuff they think they'll never have. They're challenging authority, which is a natural thing, but not necessarily in the way they're doing it. They may be better-off financially, have never had to work for anything and so have no respect for others or their property. Or they may have deep problems at home but cannot lash out there because it's dangerous, so they lash out in an impersonal store.
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Name : Deb, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Unitarian, Age : 45, City : Grand Junction, State : CO Country : United States, Occupation : student, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Lower class, This is not an age issue. This is a culture issue. I am an adult now, and I do not, nor have I ever opened a package in a store to examine the contents without returning it exactly as it was. Why? Because when I was young my mother told me it was wrong to play with things that did not belong to me without permission. Had she not corrected me, or had she displayed this same behavior when I was small, I would no doubt do the same. On a similar note: is it teenagers who open a pack of children's socks or underwear and steal one pair and leave the rest? No. It is desperate parents who don't know better.
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Name : MrsCoop, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Baptist, Age : 27, City : E Stroudsburg, State : PA Country : United States, Occupation : Administrative Assistant, Education level : High School Diploma, Social class : Lower class, This may be because certain kids believe they can do whatever whenever they want. It gives them power knowing "Look, I can do something I know is bad and get away with it." I'm 19 and attend college in Rhode Island, and I have also witnessed this and even open a package in a store but I close it and place it back on the shelf. The fact that they know someone will clean it up may be behind the issue also.
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Name : Theodore, Gender : M, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 19, City : Hartford, State : CT Country : United States, Occupation : Student, I've noticed this as well, but being a teenager, I can't really find an explanation. When I was about 14, I experienced urges to do things like what you mentioned, though I've grown more conscientious since. I think it's attributable to the fact that teenagers are starting to develop the ability to see the flaws in the authority figures in their lives, flaws that make it easier for them to undermine them. This newfound 'knowledge' lets some of them believe that they're more free to do as they please. Boredom, which they seem to encounter a lot for various reasons, gives them the opportunity to be destructive. Sorry you have to deal with kids like them.
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Name : Betty, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Bisexual, Race : Asian, Religion : Atheist, Age : 17, City : Medford, State : MA Country : United States, Occupation : Student, Education level : Less than High School Diploma, Social class : Lower middle class, I've seen it, too. I think parents' apathy played a big role in it. Parents blame others for their own kids' behavior, ie. 'Boys will be Boys'.
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Name : Amy, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : mixed, Religion : Episcopalian, Age : 34, City : Tampa, State : FL Country : United States, Occupation : homemaker, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper class, Being a teen, I think the problem stems from a lack of care and a lack of parental response at a much younger age. When I was a child, my parents made me clean up every mess I made, no matter how large or small. They taught me to respect myself and possessions belonging to others. The truth is that many teenagers of my generation don't have a lot of respect for themselves or anyone else. It may be just a 'teenage thing' from every generation, but I feel that when it degenerates to fundamental destruction and disruption, it is taking the 'I don't care' attitude to a whole new level. I think there are many parents who felt deprived of attention or money, so they are spoiling their children. This is what my mother has told me, but I see it on a large scale nowadays, where teens feel they can drink, smoke, wear and act whatever and however they want.
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Name : Amanda31480, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Bisexual, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Atheist, Age : 18, City : Santa Rosa, State : CA Country : United States, Occupation : Student, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, i wouldn't consider this to be related to age...i also have worked in retail for 4 years,in a clothing store, and have found that most of the mess and damage is done by mothers in a hurry with kids in tow who justify themselves by telling me that this is what i am paid for...although admittedly many of them do let their kids run riot while standing back saying 'isn't that cute? he's throwing a tantrum'
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Name : jemma, City : adelaide, State : NA Country : Australia, In my personal opinion, not ALL teenagers feel that they possess this over powerment in which they believe that they have the right to do whatever they please. I will admit though - there are many that feel this way. In having seen such children that enjoy to "reek havoc", it is easily seen and understood that each one of these children are either spoiled rotten, or neglected completely. You'll find that the children that found a happy medium in growing and maturing don't feel the need to cause such damage. I believe that it's a subconscious matter. Most teenagers don't know or understand this - but in my opinion, it's to make up for what they lacked in their childhood.
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Name : ToniZ, Gender : Female, Race : White/Caucasian, City : Middletown, State : CT Country : United States, Occupation : Subway, 
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