Beyond childhood Flashcards
what are physical changes of puberty
sexual maturity
growth spurt
what happens to brain development during puberty
Increase white matter, decrease grey matter
Greater plasticity in the brain (more sensitive to input)
when is early adolescence
11-14 years
when is middle adolescence
15-17 years
when is late adolescence
18+ years
what does the storm and stress model include
conflict with parents
mood disruption
Erikson’s theory of psychosocial development
Different “conflict” at each stage which must be resolved successfully
what did Erikson suggest is a key part of adolescence
identity crisis
who developed an interview technique to assess identity crisis stages
Marcia (1966)
what are the 4 identity statuses found by Marcia
diffusion
foreclosure
moratorium
achievement of identity
what is diffusion
haven’t started thinking about it seriously (no identity crisis or commitment)
what is foreclosure
formed commitment without having explored possibilities
what is moratorium
still considering alternatives
what is achievement of identity
been through crisis and reached a solution
why is adolescence often viewed as a period of turbulence
Conflict with parents, risky behaviour, mood disruptions
why is a more modified view of adolescence necessary
Not experienced by all adolescents
Over-exaggerated
when does conflict intensity peak
middle adolescence
evidence of conflict not being as high as expected
Only 1/6 of parents and 1/3 of adolescents reported conflicts (Rutter et al., 1976)
often concern mundane matters
evidence of mood disruption
Adolescents report more mood disruptions than children or adults
Some longitudinal studies report negative affect (Buchanan et al. 1992)
what type of cultures may lead to more conflict
Cultural trends favouring individualism may lead to more conflict
summary of young adulthood
Acquisition & utilization of knowledge at peak
Achieve maturity
Erikson’s conflict: intimacy vs. isolation
young adulthood ages
20-40
summary of middle adulthood
Some decline, but also intellectual stability
Peak of career achievement
Erikson’s conflict: generativity vs. stagnation
middle adulthood ages
40-64 years
late adulthood summary
Memory and other abilities decline; some might remain stable
Erikson’s conflict: integrity vs. despair
late adulthood ages
64 years
what are Piaget’s formal operations
logic, inferential reasoning, planning, ability to think about abstract concepts, hypothetical situations
criticisms of Piaget’s formal operations
limited to straightforward situations, not complexities & vagaries of real-life situations
3 themes of postformal thinking
Realization of “realitivistic” nature of knowledge
Acceptance of contradiction
Integration of contradiction into a whole concept
what cognitive gains occur from adolescence to adulthood
information processing
social cognition
what cognitive changes occur between young and middle adulthood
general stability with some decreases
where has there been evidence of increase in cognitive ability young to middle adulthood
inductive reasoning, vocabulary, verbal memory, & spatial orientation peak from 40-60yrs
what occurs during middle to late adulthood
General decline in cognitive ability
largest difference in perceptual speed
what did Schaie et al find
Decline in ages 60-67 in all tested areas except verbal recall
what is terminal decline
Cognitive functioning often lower several years prior to death
example of ability that remains in tact over lifetime
analytical reasoning
what affects cognitive decline
Relationship between physical health and cognitive ability
type of job
genetic influences
