10-22 Adolescent Development Flashcards
Explain the concept that psychological development is “epigenetic” and sequential.
.
List the significant developmental tasks and psychological themes of EARLY adolescence.
- Thinking is still concrete (Piaget)
- Pubertal changes begin
- Peer group remains primarily same-sex
- Early sexual feelings may be associated with beginning of masturbation and/or crushes, esp. on
unavailable people, such as entertainers - Children transfer primary identification from family to peer group - experience traumatic conflicts
due to conflicting loyalties to peer groups and family; - “Superego severity” decreases; speech and body habits deteriorate;
List the significant developmental tasks and psychological themes of MIDDLE adolescence.
- Thinking becomes abstract (Piaget)
- Peer group begins to shift to mixed-sex
- Peer group opinion supersedes parental influence
- Experimentation with relationships and sexuality often begins at this stage
- Teenagers whose sexual orientation is homosexual generally know this by mid adolescence, although homosexual dating may not begin until a later stage
- Self-identity begins to form, often with idealism, asceticism, or intolerance for differences of opinion
List the significant developmental tasks and psychological themes of LATE adolescence.
- Good use of abstract thinking
- Idealism blends with practical focus on future
- Parental values continue to be challenged
- Dating may become more serious or monogamous 5. Decreased anxiety about physical appearance
Explain the methods by which individuals accomplish developmental tasks.
TASKS
- To become a separate self; to define oneself, including sexual identity;
- To separate from home and parents;
METHODS
- Peer groups and institutions as “transition objects”
- Physical appearance used for self-differentiation
- Intrapsychic and interpersonal focus on “who am I?”
- Transformation of childhood fantasies into clear options; first tentative choices of adult roles; 5. For girls, particular concerns about blending self-identity as separate self with her identity within context of relationships;
Describe recent MRI research regarding adolescent brain development.
—Early ’90s: 2nd wave of dendritic prolif just b4 puberty, followed by 2ndpruning in teens.
—Newer MRI studies: ongoing neural development throughout adolescence until age 25.
—PFC undergoes blossoming of dendrites at ~11-12 y/o; promotes ↑ functioning of PFC; continues through adolescence.
—Teen process emotional info w/ amygdala (vs. PFC in adults): Might explain teens dramatic rxns
Describe several ways in which a physician facilitate adolescent development.
A. Normalize physical and emotional changes
B. Model risk assessment strategies
C. Describe personal trial-and-error experiences (as appropriate)
D. Mirror individual’s efforts at self-definition
E. Help individual interpret and refine choices
F. Model good choices
At which Tanner stage does puberty start?
STage 2
Natural bed time for a teenager
—Amt needed?
circadian rhythm shifts forward to 11pm, problematic obvi
—need 9-9.5
—sleep deprivation common!
Testosterone and Teen Brains
– by the end of adolescence, boys have 1,000 percent more testosterone than they had before puberty, and 20 times more than girls of the same age;
– adolescent boys have test surges appx 5-7 times/day
– the amygdala, the seat of emotion, has receptor sites for testosterone, so it is regularly
overstimulated;
Estrogen and Progesterone
– the amygdala does not appear to have receptor sites for estrogen and progesterone
– the hippocampus, the memory center, has estrogen receptor sites; perhaps girls have an
advantage in terms of tasks requiring memory?
– estrogen and progesterone receptors are on cells that produce serotonin, norepinephrine, and
dopamine in the brain; when hormones fluctuate through the menstrual cycle, mood can be dramatically affected.
When does puberty start in boys? Girls?
Girls: 8-13
Boys: 9-14
Thelarche
onset of secondary (postnatal) breast development
Biological Basis for ↑ risk taking in teen years
—PFC develops along a linear pattern until mid 20s
—Subcortical regions (e.g. ventral Striatum; areas sensitive to reward; likes excitement of risk taking) gets wired in a curvilinear pattern w/ peak at ~13-17 – years before the PFC is mature and allowing for judgment, strategizing and decision making.
—this mismatch in development can be involved in the increase in risk taking behavior we see in adolescence
Piaget for Teens
7-11: concrete operatation
—thought processes become “adult like” - solve problems in a more logical fashion.
—inductive reasoning
11-adulthood: formal operations
—capable of hypothetical, deductive reasoning
—abstraction
