How Does Teen and Young Adult Avoidance Behavior Work?

Avoidance behavior is when teens and young adults choose to stay away from something they find hard or stressful, like a tough subject at school or a difficult conversation.

Imagine you have a big pile of homework, and it looks really scary, like a mountain. You feel your brain saying, “I don’t want to climb that mountain right now.” So instead, you pick up your phone and start playing a game. That’s avoidance behavior, using something fun (like games) to avoid something hard (like homework).

Sometimes, people feel overwhelmed or scared of what might happen if they face the thing they're avoiding. Like if you have to give a presentation in front of everyone, and you’re worried about making mistakes, so you skip class instead.

It’s like when you don’t want to eat your veggies, but you know they’re good for you. You might choose to eat cookies instead. Your brain says, “Cookies now, veggies later.” That’s exactly what happens with avoidance behavior, a quick fix to avoid something bigger later.

But sometimes, the mountain of homework is still there tomorrow!