Adolescent Development 1 Flashcards
What is adolescence?
a period of sexual, cognitive, social and emotional maturity
- related to puberty (period of sexual maturity)
- related to period of physical changes related to general maturity
What age is adolescence according to WHO?
10 - 19 years old
- this can vary depending on time and culture
What 3 types of evidence for the idea that adolescence is a distinct biological period in development?
- specific adolescent behaviour is universal across cultures
- similar behaviours to human adolescence seen in non-human animals
- evident across history
What specific types of behaviour are seen as universal in adolescence
- risk-taking
- self-consciousness
- roles peers play in how you view yourself
- inability to self-regulate/impulsive
Give an example of similar human adolescent behaviour seen in non-human
(mice + alcohol study)
- adult mice and adolescent mice were given alcohol in the presence of mice that were of similar age
- found that adolescent mice more likely to drink alcohol/binge drink in presence of mice that were similar age
- this is compared to when mice were alone and compared to adult mice
Outline Elkind’s Adolescent Egocentrism
- extended Piaget’s development theory to adolescence
- the characteristics seen in teenagers are said to be a by-product from the transition from concrete operational stage to formal operational stage
What is the difference between concrete operational thinking and formal operational thinking?
- ability to engage in abstract thinking
- ability to recognise other people’s mental states and perspectives
Define egocentrism according to Piaget
child’s inability to see from another’s perspective
Define egocentrism according to Elkind
individual is aware of other’s view but assume own views are universal so their interests will also be interesting to someone else
Identify the key aspects of adolescent egocentrism according to Elkind
- focus on mental life becomes excessive
- illusion of transparency
- personal fable
- private God
- risk-taking
- imaginary audience
- self-consciousness
Explain the ‘focus on mental life becomes excessive’ aspect of adolescent egocentrism
- Elkind proposed that as individual becomes more aware of their own thinking, they become more preoccupied with their own thoughts and feelings
- this is the emergence of metacognitive abilities
- this merges with the formal operational stage and abstract thinking abilities of this stage
- individual becomes extremely preoccupied with their own thoughts and feelings
What are metacognitive abilities?
- ability to think about own thinking
- this is to improve learning
- includes planning, mental scripting, positive self-talk
Explain the ‘imaginary audience’ aspect of adolescent egocentrism
- this is the false belief that others are judging you and observing everything you do
- can be positive and/or negative
- as they are their own center of attention, they believe they are the center of attention everywhere
Explain the ‘illusion of transparency’ aspect of adolescent egocentrism
- feeling everyone knows what you are thinking or feeling
- overestimate the degree to which others can ‘read’ you
- the illusion that inner states and feelings ‘leak out’ and can easily be detected
Explain the ‘self-consciousness’ aspect of adolescent egocentrism
- imaginary audience is responsible for self-consciousness in teenagers
- individuals feels shame or seeks privacy due to constant feeling of being observed/criticised
