DEVELOPMENT—
ADOLESCENCE
CHAPTER 9
TRANSITION FROM CHILDHOOD TO
ADOLESCENCE
• Core Concept:
• Adolescence offers new developmental challenges
growing out of physical changes, cognitive changes, and
socio-emotional pressures.
• When does Adolescence begin?
• Psychologist mark the beginning of adolescence when
puberty (or sexual maturation) begins.
ADOLESCENCE AND CULTURE
• The social and psychological dimensions of
adolescence depend on the cultural context.
• Experiences in adolescence can differ based on the
culture you are raised in.
• Ex: Puberty/Adolescence is a sign of greater responsibility.
• Adolescences are seen as immature, confused and trouble
makers.
RITES OF PASSAGE
PHYSICAL MATURATION IN
ADOLESCENCE
• One of the first signs on approaching adolescence
is the pubescent growth spurt.
• Two to three years after the growth spurt, puberty/
sexual maturation is reached.
SEX CHARACTERISTICS
PHYSICAL MATURATION
• One of the biggest tasks of adolescence is
accepting body image.
• One’s personal and subjective view of one’s own
appearance.
• This image is dependent not only on measurable features
such as height, but as well as other people’s assessment
and perceptions.
• During this period, there is a dramatic physical changes and
heightened emphasis on peer acceptance. (especially
acceptance by sexually attractive peers).
• Physical appearance is one of the biggest concerns in teens
•
•
44% of American adolescent girls and 23% of boys claim they
have “frequently ugly and unattractive”
Girls’ self- concepts are tied to perceptions of their physical
attractiveness, while boys seem more concerned about their
athletic ability and achieving goals.
COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT IN
ADOLESCENCE
• During this stage (formal operational) the individual
begins to ponder introspective problems involving
ways of better becoming accepted by peers,
along with abstract and intangible issues, such as
fairness, love, and reason for existence.
• This is a time for teens to experiment, become involved and
expand their thoughts and beliefs.
WHAT HAPPENS IN THE BRAIN DURING
THIS PERIOD?
SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL ISSUES IN
ADOLESCENCE
• Erik Erikson suggested that the most essential problem of
adolescence is discovering one’s true identity amid the
confusion of playing many different roles for different
audiences in the social world.
• German-American psychologist
• Born in Germany as a result of his mother’s extramarital affair
• Was often teased in adolescence and it was his experiences as
young person that led to his theory of identity development
IDENTITY VS. ROLE CONFUSION
• This is the stage most relevant to adolescence
• Development depends on the individual
• Outcome is identity formation
• Healthy path – establishing a clear sense of who you are
• Unhealthy path – failure to form a secure and stable identity
DEVELOPMENT OF IDENTITY
• Identity is partially based on identifications
accumulated through childhood
• Psychosocial moratorium
• Postponing adult responsibilities to try out various possible
selves
• Not universal
• At the extreme, a negative identity may be formed
INFLUENCE OF PEERS
IS ADOLESCENCE A PERIOD OF
TURMOIL?
DELINQUENCY
• Delinquency – when juveniles commit crimes
• Three types of crimes
• Status offenses
• Index crimes
• Nonindex crimes
• The majority of crimes are committed by males
aged 15 to 25
DELINQUENCY
• Life-course-persistent delinquents
• Showed problems of neurological functioning,
temperament, and behavior from an early age
• Unpopular in childhood- aggressive, lack of
impulse control
• Likely to have been raised in a high-risk
environment
• Continue to commit crimes
• Non-normative
• Adolescent-limited delinquents
• No early signs of problems
• Periods of occasional criminal activity
• Normative
FAMILY STRUCTURE
• Single strongest correlation to delinquency
• More than 2/3 of delinquent males come from
single parent families—almost always involving a
mother but no father.
• Female delinquents/ teen moms also tend to come from
single parent, fatherless households.
• Welfare Explanation:
GIRLS IN TROUBLE
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KzxazCM8N98
• What connections about the girl’s lives did you see
in the video and our readings?
SEXUAL ISSUES IN ADOLESCENCE
• The development of sexual orientation and
behavior is an important task of adolescence.
• The majority of American adolescents males and females
admit that they often think about sex. Yet, many still lack
adequate knowledge or have misconceptions about sex
and sexuality—even if they are sexually active.
• Sex is a topic some parents find difficult to discuss with their
children, thus influencing teens to be secretive about sexual
concerns and questions.
CULTURAL INFLUENCE ON
SEXUALITY
• Sexuality is shaped by cultural context
• Asian Americans are the least likely of the major American
Ethnic groups to engage in sexual activity .
• For White American adolescents, there is a typical
progression through sexual stages – masturbation, necking
and petting, intercourse, oral sex.
• African American adolescents are more likely to skip the
petting stage and move right into sex.
STATISTICS
• Masturbation is the most common expression of sexual
impulses in adolescence.
• (1990) By the age 16, almost 90% of boys and 60% of girls in the
U.S. report that they have masturbated. (Janus&Janus).
• These statistics could be distorted, because scientist find it
difficult to get good data on such a private sexual practice.
• To test these theories, research normally involves anonymous
surveys.
• Participants tend to not answer truthfully, because they feel
ashamed or guilty.
STATISTICS
• What percentage of high school and college students
have had sex?
• 33% of 9th graders
• 62% of 12th graders
• 80% of college students
• Ethnic differences in proportion of high school students
who have had sex
• Lowest for white adolescents (49%)
• Somewhat higher for Latino adolescents (58%)
• Highest for African American adolescents (73%)
GAY, LESBIAN, AND BISEXUAL
TEENS
• It is during adolescence that most gay, lesbian, and
bisexual (GLB) people become fully aware of their sexual
orientation
• Coming out
• In most Western cultures, GLB adolescence engage in the
process of coming out
• Involves a person’s recognizing his or her own sexual identity
and then disclosing the truth to friends, family, and others
SAME-SEX ORIENTATION
• A Homosexual identity can be traumatic for many
adolescents, usually because of the homophobia that
exists in many societies
• About one third attempt suicide
• Higher rates of substance abuse, school and family
problems
• Exposure to mistreatment by peers
• In recent years there has been a cultural shift in the US
toward more favorable and tolerant perceptions
• Increased media presence
• Positive teen attitudes have tripled in the past decade
to 54%
HETEROSEXUAL BEHAVIOR IN
ADOLESCENCE
Gender Differences:
• The initial sexual experiences of males and females
differ tremendously.
• For the majority of females, emotional involvement is an
important ingredient of sexual attraction.
• For most males, personal relationships appear to be less
important than the actual sex itself.
THINK, PAIR, & SHARE
• Reflect on the statistics of sexual activity in teens—
do these numbers shock you? Why or Why not?
• Reflect on homosexuality in teens– do you feel that
teens who are openly gay are more likely to be
bullied in social environments?
KOHLBERG’S MORAL DEVELOPMENT
• John Q:
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bc0vO7XqkE0
KOHLBERG’S THEORY OF MORAL
DEVELOPMENT
• Kohlberg presented his participants with hypothetical
moral dilemmas and asked them to make a judgment
and explain their reasons for their decision.
• Whether a person judged the actions of the main
character in the dilemma as right or wrong was not
important. Rather, his or her reasoning for the judgment
was key to determining stage of moral reasoning.
MORAL REASONING STAGES
CONSIDER…
•
In Europe, a woman was near death from a special kind
of cancer. There was one drug that the doctors thought might
save her. It was a form of radium that a druggist in the same
town had recently discovered. The drug was expensive to
make, but the druggist was charging ten times what the drug
cost him to make. He paid $200 for the radium and charged
$2,000 for a small dose of the drug. The sick woman's husband,
Heinz, went to everyone he knew to borrow the money, but
he could only get together about $ 1,000 which is half of what
it cost. He told the druggist that his wife was dying and asked
him to sell it cheaper or let him pay later. But the druggist said:
"No, I discovered the drug and I'm going to make money from
it." So Heinz got desperate and broke into the man's store to
steal the drug-for his wife. Should the husband have done
that? (Kohlberg, 1963, p. 19)
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zY4etXWYS84
KOHLBERG’S STAGES
CRITIQUES OF KOHLBERG
• Gender critique
• Justice orientation versus care orientation
• Carol Gilligan:
• Cultural critique
• Biased toward individualistic cultures
• Use of hypothetical dilemmas
CONCLUSION
• Adolescence is a developmental stage that is
heavily influenced by peers, family, and society.
• These effects can be both positive and negative.
• During this stage, teens experiment to create an
“identity”.