Adolescence Flashcards
Overproduction
Sharp increase in synaptic connections occurs around the time puberty begins (10-12), called overproduction or exuberance
Overproduction also occurs prenatal and in first three years of life
Overproduction in adolescence is especially concentrated in frontal lobes for higher functions like problem solving and making moral judgements
Overproduction peaks at 11 or 12 but this is not when our cognitive abilities peak
In the years following, massive synaptic pruning after overproduction happens
Synaptic pruning and myelination
Between 12-20 brain loses 7-10% of its volume from synaptic pruning
fMRI found synaptic pruning especially rapid in adolescents with high intelligence, allows brain to work more efficiently
As the brain specialises in this way, it also becomes less flexible and less amenable to change
Myelination also occurs to increase efficiency, however also makes brain functioning less flexible and changeable
cerebellum
Cerebellum also grows- found to be important in higher functions like maths, decisions, music, humour and social skills
Cerebellum continues to grow through adolescence into emerging adulthood, suggesting that the potential for these functions continues to grow too
Last part of brain to stop growing or changing (mid twenties)
girls puberty
on average 2 years before boys
timing of puberty
Given a similar cultural environment, variation in order and timing of pubertal events among adolescents appears to be due to genetics
The more similar two people are genetically, the more similar their timing of pubertal events, most similar in identical twins
secular trend puberty cultures
in every western country, age at menarche decreasing steadily
If this happens for girls, likely similar pattern in boys too
May be due to improvements in nutrition and medical care
developed vs developing menarche
Average age of menarche lowest in developed countries and higher in developing
In countries with rapid economic development like China and South Korea, there has been a decline in average age of menarche too
anorexia characterised by 4 symptoms
Inability to maintain body weight at least 85% of normal for height
Fear of weight gain
Lack of menstruation
Distorted body image
eating disorders most common
in cultures that emphasise slimness with ideal female physique (western countries)
Eating disorders increasing in countries becoming more westernised like Fiji
motivations behing substance use
classified as experimental, social, medical and addictive
People who take part in experimental substance use try a substance one then do not use it again
Social substance use involves the use of substances during social activities with friends
Medicinal substance use is to relieve an unpleasant emotional state (self medication)
People who do medicinal substance use do it more frequently than social and experimental
Addictive substance use is when a person has come to depend on regular use to feel good physically or mentally
Experience withdrawal symptoms like high anxiety and tremors when they stop
Addictive substance use is the more regular and frequent substance use of the four categories
Paiget’s stage
formal operations
Begins at 11 and reaches completion somewhere between 15-20
People learn to think systematically about possibilities and hypotheses
Allows adolescents to reason about complex tasks and problems involving multiple variables
Also includes the development of abstract thinking
hypothetical-deductive reasoning
Ability to think scientifically and apply the rigour of the scientific method to cognitive tasks
pendulum problem- hypothetical deductive reasoning
Piaget used this to test if moved from concrete to formal operations; given a pendulum hanging on string and asked what determines its speed of seating
Children in concrete operations approach this with random attempts, often changing more than one variable at a time
In formal operations, use the kind of hypothetical thinking in a scientific method, try different variables one at a time and test their effect, and arrives at an answer that can be explained and defended
information processing
Attention and memory key to condition in information processing approach, and there are advances to both in adolescence
Selective and divided attention more proficient, better at using memory strategies
Adolescents also more adept at doing tasks that require divided attention, with emerging adults even better
memory, especially LTM, improves too as more likely to use mnemonic devices
Memory also improves because adolescents have more experience and knowledge, which enhances LTM effectiveness
metacodnition
capacity to think about thinking, not only your own thoughts but also others’
When their metacognition first develops, adolescents may have difficulty distinguishing their thinking about their own thoughts form their thinking about the thoughts of others, resulting in a distinctive kinds of adolescent egocentrism
two kinds of adolescent egocentrism by Elking
imaginary audience
personal fable
imaginary audience
Results from adolescents’ limited capacity to distinguish between their thinking about themselves from others
Because aware of their own thinking and how they might appear to others, they conclude that others must also be thinking about them a great deal
Thus imagine an audience for their appearance and behaviour
Makes them more self conscious than in middle childhood
Adults have this too, but the tendency is stronger in adolescence, when the capacity for distinguishing between our own perspective and that of others is less developed
personal fable
Belief of imaginary audience leads to the belief that there must be something special about yourself
Personal fable is an adolescents’ belief in the uniqueness of their personal experiences and destiny
Can make them feel like ‘nobody understands’
Can also cause high hopes
May contribute to risky behaviours believing that they are protected from adverse consequences
According to Elkind, personal fable scores increase from early to mid adolescence and correlate with participation in risky behaviours
Diminishes with age but never disappears
With age, we realise out thoughts and feelings not as exceptional as once believed
emotionality
adolescence is a time of emotional volatility (more likely to feel self conscious, embarrassed, lonely, nervous, ignored and moodier
From preadolescence to adolescence, feeling ‘very happy’ declines by 50%
Decline in average emotional states with age during the course of adolescence
Limited evidence to answer culture question, but found similar results in India
self development
Self conceptions become more complex due to advances in cognitive development
Seef esteem becomes more complex but also declines in early adolescence before rising in late adolescence and emerging adulthood
two kinds of possible selves
Ideal self: who the adolescent would like to be
Feared self: who the adolescent dreads becoming
Both require abstract thinking
This can be troubling- become aware of discrepancy between actual and ideal self which, If large enough, can cause feelings of failure, inadequacy and depression
Discrepancy is greater in mid adolescence than early or late which also explains similar trend of depressed mood
Aware when exhibiting a false self- a self they present to others while realising that it does not represent what they are actually thinking or feeling
Most likely with potential romantic partners
self esteem
Declines in early adolescence, then rises through late adolescence and emerging adulthood
Imaginary audience may contribute
Western adolescents value opinion of peers on daily basis
Combination of greater self consciousness about evaluations by peers and peers’ potentially harsh evaluations contributes to declines in self esteem in early adolescence
Self esteem rises in late adolescence and emerging adulthood as peers’ evaluations become less important
8 domains of adolescent self concept (Harter)
Scholastic competence Social acceptance Athletic competence Physical appearance Job competence Romantic appeal Behavioural conduct Close friendships
Kohlbergs theory of moral development
Viewed moral development as based on cognitive development, and believed that moral thinking changes in predictable ways as cognitive abilities develop, regardless of culture
Presented people with hypothetical moral dilemmas, and asked what they believed was right or wrong and why
What was crucial to understanding their moral development was not what they thought was right or wrong, but their explanations or moral reasoning
