Adolescence Flashcards
Puberty
Period of rapid physical maturation involving hormonal and bodily changes that take place in early adolescence
Girls onset of puberty age
11 and 12 years (but lots of variability)
Boys onset of puberty age
13 and 14 years
What is a secular trend?
a pattern of change that occurs over several generations
Primary sex characteristics
characteristics that are associated with the development of organs required for reproduction
Secondary sex characteristics
signs of sexual maturity that do not involve sex organs
Menarche
onset of menstruation
- timing varies across the world
- proportion of fat to muscle plays a role
- girls have lately been entering puberty earlier
Puberty in boys, main genital effects
- growth of penis and scrotum around age 12, reaches adult size 3-4 years later
- prostate gland and seminal vesicles enlarge
- spermarche- occurs around 13
Hormones
chemical substances secreted by endocrine glands and carried through bloodstream
Hypothalamus
brain structure involved in eating and sexual behaviour
Testosterone
Hormone associated in boys with genital development, increased height, deep voice
Estradiol
Hormone associated in girls with breast, uterine, and skeletal development
Body image
- adolescents are preoccupied with their bodies
- body dissatisfaction is more present during puberty
Gender differences in body image
- Girls less happy with their bodies
- Boys become more satisfied with their bodies as they move through puberty
Early maturation in Boys
-perceive themselves more positively and had more successful peer relationships than late-maturing boys
Early maturation in girls
- May increase girls’ vulnerability to problems
- smoking, drinking, eating disorders, early dating and sex
Sleep patterns in adolescence
- inadequate sleep, less than 8 hours
- when given opportunity to sleep as long as desired, avg is 9 hours 25 mins
- hormonal shifts in biological clock cause later waking (delay in melatonin)
Obesity rates
1/5 adolescents are overweight
Obesity increases the risk of
- high blood pressure
- diabetes
- future obesity
What is a big contributor to obesity?
-lack of exercise and healthy eating choices
Anorexia nervosa
relentless pursuit of thinness through starvation
- weighing less than 85% of normal weight for that age
- intense fear of gaining weight, distorted body image
What type of disorders are often present with eating disorders?
Mood and anxiety disorders
What medication can be used to treat eating disorders?
Antidepressants can be used but only when individual reaches a typical weight
How can eating disorders result in death?
Can be the restriction of food itself, or cardiovascular dysfunction
Bulimia Nervosa
- binge and purge eating pattern
- self induced vomiting
- preoccupied with food, strong fear of becoming overweight
- late adolescence, early adulthood
Binge eating disorder
- binge without the purge
- frequently overweight
- eat in secret and feel disgust after
- begins in childhood or adolescence
What type of parents are more likely to have children with eating disorders?
Perfectionist or over demanding
Why do adolescents use drugs?
- Pleasure
- Escape from pressures
- Thrill
- Peer pressure
What is a critical risk period for alcohol abuse?
Transition from high school to college
- social and coping benefits from drinking
- drinking is expected by peers
Binge drinking
Having 5 or more drinks in one sitting
1 in 4 uni students report binge drinking
What is the number one predictor of if you will do drugs?
If your friends use drugs
Tobacco
- males more than females
- 3% grade 6-9
- 13% grade 10-12
Why do we see more drug use among the younger demographic?
Executive function, ability to think about how your actions will influence your future, doesn’t mature until 25
Neural pruning and myelination
These contribute to an increase in cognitive abilities
-prefrontal cortex undergoes dramatic development
Formal operational stage
the fourth of Piaget’s stages
- learn to reason logically about abstract concepts
- abstract thinking, complex thinking, metacognition
Systematic problem solving
the process of finding a solution to a problem by testing individual factors
Hypothetico-deductive reasoning
the ability to derive conclusions from premises that are hypothetical
What experiment is used to test if people have reached formal operational stage?
Pendulum problem
- if they manipulate one variable at a time, they were at this stage
- if they manipulated everything at once, they are not
Does everyone reach formal operational thinking
Nope, only 40-60% in University would be able to solve pendulum or cup problem
Postformal thinking
Type of reasoning that takes into consideration the complexity of situations that occur in real life
-This is beyond formal operational thinking
Reflective Judgment
the ability to evaluate the accuracy of arguments as well as their coherence
Adolescent egocentrism (Piaget)
Extreme self-consciousness, belief that others are focused on appearance
David Elkind’s view of egocentrism
Two beliefs accompany formal operations:
- Imaginary audience: belief that we are alone on stage with audience judging us
- Personal fable: belief that he/she is special or unique
Depression
More than 25% of adolescents report feeling depression, 3% experience major depression
Suicide
2nd most common cause of death for 15-24 year olds (1st is car accidents)
-higher success rate for males, but more attempts by females
Suicide rate in 20th century
has increased by 600%
How many youth who commit suicide were previously seeing therapist?
50%
What is critical in preventing suicides?
individualized treatment plans
Trend in friendships nowadays
Rather than establishing a few intimate relationships, trend to have many friends on social media
-losing face to face interactions and depth of communication
Middle and high SES education
higher scores on standardized testing, low SES has less access to resources
Grade inflation
students given grade that inflates their perception of performance
-likely not capabilities that have increased, but teachers are just being more generous with grades
School dropouts
8% of students
- more males
- highest in northern areas
- immigrant youth have a lower dropout rate
- low SES more likely to dropout
Social world monitoring
Adolescents monitor their social world, realize they are making different impressions on different people
-have private and public faces
What are some areas of adolescent developments in self-understanding
- abstract thinking
- self consciousness
- contradictions with self
- fluctuating self
- real and ideal self
- self integration
What is the major reason for a dip in self esteem?
social comparison
Who has higher self-esteem?
Males
higher SES background
Identity vs identity
Erikson
-adolescents faced with deciding who they are, where they are going
Search for identity is aided by _______ _______
psychosocial moratorium- time when individuals are free to explore identity alternatives
Two pathways of identity confusion
- withdraw from peers and family
- immerse themselves in world of peers and lose their identity in the crowd
What are the three major pillars of adolescence?
1) vocational path
2) ideological stance
3) sexual orientation
- need to develop vague commitment to these
True or false, Erikson himself had an identity crisis?
True, deceived into thinking man was his real father, but he wasn’t
Identity crisis
Period of identity development during which individual explores alternatives
Identity commitment
personal investment in identity
4 identity statuses
1) Identity diffusion
2) Identity foreclosure
3) Identity moratorium
4) Identity achievement
- status is based on your degree of crisis and commitment
Identity foreclosure
Made a commitment, but did little exploring
-satisfied, but high need for social approval
Identity acheivement
Explored a little and made a commitment
Identity moratorium
Exploring but still made no commitment
Identity diffusion
No exploring and no commitment
What approach is used to determine someone’s status
Interview approach
What identity most likely in adolescence
Key change in identity most likely in adulthood
-young adults are identity diffused, further exploration during college years
Three requirements for adolescents to find identity achievement according to Marcia
- confidence that they have parental support
- established sense of industry
- take a reflective stance towards future
what are MAMA cycles
changing from moratorium and achievement and back again
-identity may not remain stable throughout life
Identity consolidation
continues into early adulthood and possibly into middle
What is a key thing for identity exploration to happen?
Peer support
-if you are confident in the support of your friends, able to try out more roles and know you won’t be rejected by them
Ethnic minority groups and identity
struggle to maintain ethnic identity while blending into dominant culture
- cultural majority groups take cultural identity for granted
Four categories of ethnic identity when you move to new country
Integration- maintain culture, fit into new culture
Assimilation- lose old culture, fit into new culture
Separation- maintain old culture, don’t fit into new culture
Marginalization- don’t maintain old culture or fit into new culture
Ethnic Identity
- sense of membership to a group
- choice between own ethnic group or dominant culture
- bicultural identity
Reference Groups
groups of people that an individual compare him or herself to
-don’t have to be part of the group
Adolescence is the most important time for _____
peer relationships, growing dependence on peers
Cliques
Small groups (2-12 people)
Members are usually same age and same sex, engage in similar activities
-not necessarily friends with everyone in the clique
Crowds
larger than clique
- membership based on reputation
- do not spend much time together
- defined by activities
When does conformity increase?
In adolescence, peaks in grade 8 or 9 just after puberty
More likely to conform if being pressured by someone who you perceive as higher in social status
Controversial adolescents
liked by some peers, disliked by others
Rejected adolescents
actively disliked and peers may react to them in negative ways
Neglected adolescents
receive little attention from peers
Undersocialized delinquents
raised with little discipline or harsh, uncaring supervision
- engage in early criminal activity, often have ADHD
- Rehab is hard, recidivism is high
Socialized delinquents
know and subscribe to the norms of society
-highly peer influenced, parenting is not the problem
What part of the brain has an important role in maternal attachment
Prefrontal cortex
-subcortical regions of the amygdala
What hormones are important in maternal-infant bond
Oxytocin and Vasopressin
-oxytocin released during breast feeding
Secure attachment
facilitates social competence and well-being, makes for healthier and higher quality relationships later in life
What are the outcomes of secure attachment
positive peer relations, emotional regulation
Stages in romantic relationships
- Entry into romantic attractions, crushes, dating in groups (11-13 yr old)
- Exploring romantic relationships, causal dating (14-16 yrd old)
- Consolidating dyadic romantic bonds, more serious romances and emotional bonds (17-19 yr old)
What percentage of 11-13 year olds have relationship experience
15-20%
What plays a role in determining if teenagers will have a late start to dating?
Parental values and parental religious inclinations
Intimacy
Uncommon in early relationships, becomes more common in later adolescence. Intimacy is about being vulnerable and letting down your guard
First sexual intercourse
43% between 15-19 years old
What did Kinsey say about sexual preferences?
That people exist on a continuum of sexual preferences
Transgendered vs transexual
transgendered, identity doesn’t conform to what is typical of your sex
Transexual- altered yourself surgically to be opposite sex
What determines sexual orientation?
- genetics
- hormone production
- environmental factors
How many teenage pregnancies?
2.5% of teenage girls become pregnant in Canada,
1 in 20 sexually active teens will become pregnant
Risk factors for teenage pregnancies
- social and gamily difficulties
- have mothers who were also adolescent mothers
- early puberty
- sexually abused
- alcohol
Religion
really important time for consolidation of beliefs
-increased logical reasoning, abstract thinking,
idealistic thinking
Cults can have health damaging behaviours
Ex. ignoring medical advice, refusing blood transfusions
Most religions promote health
Influence lifestyle issues, social networks, coping with stress, support group
Does working in adolescence benefit them?
it does benefit those in low income neighbourhoods –> increased school engagement and decreased delinquency
What is a friendship?
Relationship that is reciprocal, based on mutual affection
What are the basic building blocks of interpersonal relationships?
Social skills
Philosophical perspective on friendships
1) Utility- provide some kind of use to you
2) Affection
3) The “Good”- like them for who they are, for the sake of liking
Psychological perspective on friendships
“Chumships”- especially capable of providing empathy. A real friend
Developmental context-adolescence is the true friendships
Interpersonal understanding
Level 0 friendship (3-7 years)
Egocentric, undifferentiated
-friend is someone in close proximity
Level 1 friendship (4-9 years)
Unilateral, one way assistance
-friend is someone who does something based on your wants and needs
Level 2 friendship (6-12 years)
Reciprocal , cooperation, trust
-friendship is a two-way street
Level 3 friendship (11-15 years)
Mutual, intimate
-trust and jealousy are related to the friendship bond
Level 4 friendship (15+ years)
Interdependence
-stable and enduring
Friendship characteristics in preschoolers
- Stability
- Complexity of play
- Affect
Reciprocity
degree to which two friends like one another
-more frequent in middle childhood
When asked to choose best friend in the class, those who choose eachother are a ___
dyad
Friendship Quality
- positive
- negative
- exclusivity/asymmetry
Stability of friendships
Early childhood- moderate instability, 50% of friendships maintained across a school year
Middle childhood
- some instability
- 75% of friendships maintained across a school year
