Adolescent Development
Laura Kastner, Ph.D.
Clinical Professor
Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
Department of Psychology
University of Washington
“I’m wondering about Sarah…
“Sarah (15) smokes pot with her friends almost every weekend. She says she can’t
talk to her parents about anything, and that they annoy her constantly. Her
grades have gone down since she started high school this year. She says that
all she wants to do is be online with her friends and blog. Feeling like an
“outcast” at school, she admits to acting like she is more experienced sexually
than she really is for her blog. She reports that she has not had sexual
intercourse yet: “I only like to hook up and “mess around”.”
“A website on drug abuse cited these warning signs:
• withdrawal
• moodiness
• increased family conflict
• argumentativeness
• over-reactivity to criticism
• sloppiness in appearance
• spending time isolating in room
• poor attitude
• disrespect
• loss of interest in family activities.”
“Does Sarah have a drug abuse problem?”
Late (17-18)
Early (10-13)
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Social
So
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Emotional
Increased desire to be with friends;
push for greater independence; less
contentment in being exclusively
with family; increased identification
with peer culture; value on
independence and individualism
highly influenced by culture and
ethnicity
Increased moodiness, irrational
behavior, emotional reactivity and
impulsivity related to puberty and
changes in the prefrontal cortex.
Middle (14-16)
Identity formation and values
exploration; strong preference
for the company of friends, but
still connected to parents for
support, desire for approval
and long-term attachments;
peer conformity is driven by
strong desire for peer
acceptance
Integration of values
internalized from parents,
experience and generational
influences; friendship choices
less related to similar interests
and more to valued individual
characteristics and qualities;
intimacy increasingly sought.
Increased arousal and novelty
seeking; low motivation for
what is perceived as boring;
increased conflict with parents;
emotional dysregulation results
from “amygdala hijacks.”
Growing ability to recognize
and manage emotions,
demonstrate empathy, resolve
conflicts constructively and
work cooperatively with
others.
Physical Development
• Bodily changes resulting from pubertal
development
• Anxiety and self-consciousness
• Sexual identity development
• Puberty stimulates changes in the intensity
and duration of affective states and drives
Cognitive Development
• Shift from concrete to formal operations:
increasing ability to understand abstract concepts,
symbolic thought and hypothetical ideas (Piaget)
• Adolescents’ cognitive style has been
characterized as “egocentrism,” and includes
“myth of immunity”, denial, poor risk assessment,
and irrational beliefs (Elkind, Erikson).
• And then came neuroscience…
The
Thinking
Brain
Emotion
Brain
Emotion Brain-(limbic system)
fears/rewards
Amygdala-fear and anxiety center (fight,
flight, flood)
• Also hypocampus, ventral striatum,
hypothalamus, nucleus accumbens
The reward pathway in the “emotion brain”
(dopamine surge—I WANT IT!)
Brain Maturation Research
• Significant “pruning” of the prefrontal lobes
starting around age 13, without full
maturation until early 20’s.
• Much of the poor decision-making skills
which have been attributed to “raging
hormones” is probably also a result of this
brain remodeling process.
Teen Brain
NASCAR
Metaphor
• Big engine—maturing bodies,
independence-striving
• Poor Driver—immature PFC and judgment
• Faulty Brake system—immature inhibitory
mechanisms in PFC
• High octane fuel—hormones
Put simply……
• During adolescence, behavior is often
more governed by the emotional centers
than the thinking centers of the brain,
especially during high arousal situations
and in peer presence.
Emotional Regulation 101:
Teaching Brain Basics
• The limbic system, or “emotion brain”, has
evolved to guide us about what is desirable and
undesirable for survival. It “triggers” when we are
afraid, angry, distressed and upset.
• The amygdala is the fear and anxiety center,
triggered by truly life threatening events and false
alarms (“flooding”).
• The “neo-cortex” houses the “thinking” brain
(“prefrontal cortex, the “CEO”), which allows us
to plan ahead, weigh costs and benefits of options
for decision making, and control our impulses.
Adolescence is an era of high risk and high opportunity.
• “Use it or lose it” in neuroscience refers to the need to
use the brain “like a muscle” in order to stimulate
new connections.
• Changes in circadian rhythms alter alert-fatigue
signals, affecting memory and biorhythms. Sleep
problems are common, especially with the overuse of
media.
• Teens differ from adults in their dopaminergic
systems and reward sensitivity, with implications for
increased risk-taking, vulnerability to drug addiction
and intense media attraction and compulsivity.
(Casey, Galvan et al (2008) Developmental Review“Braking and Accelerating in
Adolescent Brain”
Developmental research qualifiers:
• Marked changes in moodiness, emotional reactivity and
risk-taking among adolescents are neither universal or
inevitable (but they are more likely than not)
• Although gender, culture and age differences among
adolescents can be important, temperament is a powerful
predictor of behavior
• What is interpreted as “normal” depends on the one’s
psychosocial assessment, sophistication of knowledge
about adolescence and personal “filters.”
Ethnic Diversity
• Developing a strong ethnic identity contributes to
high self-esteem among ethnic minority
adolescents (Carlson et al, 2000).
• Parents and role models are key for establishing
pride in shared values, traditions and practices of a
cultural group.
• Adolescence may be the first time they reflect on
the implications of their group identification.
Culture mediates… everything?
• Ethnic identity is influenced by parent
messaging in minorities (Boyd-Franklin)
• Values vary (respect for elders, religion
sexuality, racism, individualism, selfexpression and shame)
• Family assumptions and alpha/beta errors
(Sue)
• Americanization in first generation
immigrants
• Implications for psychiatric dx and tx
Neuroendocrine system changes
• Testosterone in boys can increase by 100% by the
end of puberty, and 20 X more than girls of same
age.
• Amygdala has receptors for testosterone, which
probably contributes to increased novelty seeking,
territoriality and exploration for stimulation.
• Hormones have impact on neurotransmitters,
moods and symptoms: norepinephrine
(energizer); dopamine (pleasure); and serotonin
(mood stabilization, relaxation, confidence)
Sensitivity of the teen brain to
substances
• Alcohol stimulates the release of dopamine during the
“sensitive period” of adolescence, decreasing the natural
production.
• Heavy alcohol use interferes with memory and glutamate
functioning.
• Nicotine stimulates dopamine supply and affects other
neurotransmitters, allowing rapid addiction.
• Dopamine “squirts” result from computer games,
stimulating media, gambling and other high arousal
pursuits.
Social Development
• Increased preference for the company of peers and
greater autonomy from parents.
• Gender patterns; “perfect girl prototype” (SteinerAdair) pressures and “hypermasculine” boy
(Pollock, Thompson).
• Parental influence still prevails in families with
parent-child connectedness and authoritative
discipline.
• Peer influence is greatest in areas of taste,
customs, and generational issues.
• Positive peer influence is underestimated.
Family Development
• Storm and stress is not inevitable or universal
among adolescents, but it is more likely than not.
• Random moment sampling reveals that young
teens experience negative thoughts and feelings in
the company of their parents at 10X rate of other
settings (Csikszentmihalyi, Larson).
• Most families experience higher parent-child
conflict, more teen behavioral experimentation
and more teen mood lability during ages 11-16.
Identity Development
• Identity formation involves questioning values and
the status quo, especially re: politics, religion,
sexuality, substance use, and future goals (“ego
development” research: Marcia, Loevinger).
• Parents who share their own values, support the
questioning and identity growth process, and are
“authoritative” in their parenting style produce the
most well-adjusted young adults (Grotevant,
Allen).
Hot Topics in Adolescent
Development
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Risk-taking and prevention
Emotional regulation, motivation & self control
Emotional and social competence
Effects of media & media literacy
Sleep deprivation
Stress reduction (mindfulness, exercise, healthy
eating)
• Bullying
• Family health
Adolescent Risk
• Developmentally adaptive for most, but
harmful to others.
• Early adolescence is a time of particular
vulnerability
• The role of context in the development of
risk-taking plays a role in protecting or
exacerbating the adaptation of individuals
with regulatory vulnerabilities.
Adolescent Risk-taking
• Adolescents engage in dangerous activities
despite understanding (cognitively) the risks
involved.
• Actions are determined by feelings,
impulses, opportunity, and the functioning
(or lack thereof) of the “executive suite”in
the frontal lobes (planning, monitoring,
evaluating, and reflecting).
Biological risks
• Family or child psychiatric illness, mental
disorder, trauma
• Family or child antisocial history
• Family or child substance abuse
Child’s individual risks
• Child behavior problems (conduct, ADHD,
aggressive/disruptive)
• School problems (failure, poor performance,
truancy, low investment in school)
• Early risk-taking and substance use
• Alienation, rebelliousness, peer rejection
and lack of social bonding to pro-social
endeavors and society
Social risks
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Poverty
Deficient schools and opportunities
Dangerous neighborhoods
Lack of positive role models
Peer risk-taking
Social isolation/lack of social support
Lack of connection to school
Protective variables which
enhance resilience
(Masten, Garmezy, Rutter)
• High intelligence
• Adaptable temperament
• School commitment/value on achievement/quality
schools
• Parenting quality/secure attachment
• Value on health, future goals and pro-social moral
code
• Extracurricular activities/opportunities for positive
youth engagement
Family management risks
• Poor supervision
• Poor boundaries, authority and problem-solving
skills
• Difficulties in marriage, couple or single
parenthood
• Inconsistent/permissive/authoritarian parenting
style
• Negative communication patterns
• Physical or emotional maltreatment
• Parental tolerance of deviance
Parenting as a key mediator to
adverse life experiences
• Family cohesiveness and parent connectedness are
cornerstone protective variables (Resnick).
• Research on authoritative parenting indicates the
importance of high control, effective
communication and warmth (Baumrind,
Steinberg).
• Parental intrusiveness ( psychological
control/parental anxious emotional
involvement/enmeshment) is a risk variable
(Barber).
What are the biggest hot button issues
for parents during the teen years?
(14 chapters of “Getting to Calm”)
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Rudeness, sassiness and the morphing into a teen
Risk-taking, defiance, rule breaking
Lying, exaggeration (distorting the truth) and dishonesty
Parent polarization (when parents don’t agree)
Entitlement, spoiled behaviors
Distancing and disconnection (identity issues)
Picking fights in various ways (emotional regulation, gender issues)
Peer issues, fear of negative influence
Over-Plugged into media and electronics
Teen romance
Sex
Disappointing academic performance
Substance use
Stressed-out families and kids
(40% of teens 13-18 have lifetime prevalenceof mental illness,
Merikangas et al ., J Am Acad Ch Adol Psychiatry. 2010)