
What Teens Are Trying to Tell Us: The Crisis of Connection and Masculinity
From Parenting Teens Untangled - Realistic, science-backed teen & tween parenting advice by Rachel Richards
June 3, 2026 · 58 min · Season 5 · Episode 194
About this episode
The episode explores the struggles of teens, particularly boys, regarding masculinity, friendship, and mental health through the insights of Professor Niobe Way.
Ask Rachel anything What are we really telling boys about how to be a man? And why do so many teens seem to be struggling with how to be in the world, from masculinity to friendship, and mental health? In this conversation with Professor Niobe Way (NYU developmental psychologist, author of Deep Secrets and Rebels with a Cause), we dug into 40 years of research with adolescents. Her work is extraordinary because she has done something deceptively simple and radically powerful: She listened to ...
People in this episode
Host: Rachel Richards
Guest: Niobe Way
Topics covered
- masculinity
- teen mental health
- friendship
- adolescent research
- parenting advice
Keywords
- teen struggles
- masculinity
- mental health
- friendship
- adolescent research
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: NYU
Books & works: Deep Secrets, Rebels with a Cause
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