This historical study analyzes the transformation of the concept ‘adolescence’ in post-war Vietnam (1975–2005) and its implications for social work. Government-regulated media documents show that the concept of adolescence has undergone three phases corresponding to the three political-economic shifts in Vietnam over these decades: adolescents as miniature communists (1975–1986); adolescents as growing youths characterized by romantic sentiments, puberty, and identity search (1986–1995); and adolescents as the newly coined ‘teen Viet’ and vanguards of capitalist consumption (1996–2005). Social work with Vietnamese adolescents and families must consider the impact of these conceptual shifts on thoughts, emotions, and behaviors of corresponding adolescent cohorts.