Physical, Cognitive and Psychosocial Development in Adolescence (11 to 19/20) Louis Montano, MS, RPm Physical and Cognitive Development Concrete Operational Stage • Adolescence - Developmental transition between childhood and adulthood entailing major physical, cognitive, and psychosocial changes. • Puberty - Process by which a person attains sexual maturity and the ability to reproduce. Adolesnce: A Time of Risks • to ride in a car without a seat belt or to ride with a driver who has been drinking; • to carry weapons; • to have sexual intercourse or to have it without condoms; • or to attempt suicide How Puberty Begins § First, the hypothalamus releases elevated levels of gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH). § The increased GnRH then triggers a rise in lutenizing hormone (LH) and folliclestimulating hormone (FSH). § In girls, increased levels of FSH lead to the onset of menstruation. In boys, LH initiates the release of two additional hormones: testosterone and androstendione (Buck Louis et al., 2008). How Puberty Begins Puberty can be divided into two stages § Adrenarche - the adrenal glands secrete increasing levels of androgens which contributes to the growth of pubic, axillary (underarm), and facial hair. § Gonadarche - marked by the maturing of the sex organs. § § female genitals, breasts, pubic and underarm hair male genitals, muscle mass, and body hair Puberty and Sexual Maturity • Typically begin at age 8 in girls and age 9 in boys. • Takes about 3 to 4 years. • Primary sex characteristics - Organs directly related to reproduction, which enlarge and mature during adolescence. • ovaries, fallopian tubes, uterus, clitoris, and vagina • testes, penis, scrotum, seminal vesicles, and prostate gland • Secondary sex characteristics - Physiological signs of sexual maturation that do not involve the sex organs. • Adolescent growth spurt - Sharp increase in height and weight that precedes sexual maturity. Puberty and Sexual Maturity • Spermarche - Boy’s first ejaculation. • Occurs at an average age of 13 • Menarche - Girl’s first menstruation. • Can vary from age 10 to 16½ • Many studies have indicated that the start of puberty has shifted downward in the twentieth century • An example of a secular trend. The Adolescent Brain • Continuing myelination in the frontal lobe facilitates information processing. • Processing of information about emotions: • Limbic and reward systems mature earlier → risky behaviors • Older adolescents are more likely to use the frontal lobe, which permits more accurate, reasoned judgment. Physical and Mental Health Why do adolescents stay up late? • Playing video games, talking to or texting friends, and surfing the web. • Later secretion of melatonin. • Starting school later, or at least offering difficult courses later in the day, would positively influence key outcomes such as student attendance, fatigue, and academic achievement Physical and Mental Health body image - Descriptive and evaluative beliefs about one’s appearance • Anorexia nervosa - Eating disorder characterized by self-starvation. • Bulimia Nervosa - Eating disorder in which a person regularly eats huge quantities of food and then purges the body by laxatives, induced vomiting, fasting, or excessive exercise. • Binge eating disorder - Eating disorder in which a person loses control over eating and binges huge quantities of food. Physical and Mental Health Addiction • Substance abuse - Repeated, harmful use of a substance, usually alcohol or other drugs. • Substance dependence -Addiction (physical, or psychological, or both) to a harmful substance. • Binge drinking - Consuming 5 or more drinks (for men) or 4 or more drinks (for women) on one occasion. Suicide • Adolescent girls are more likely to attempt suicide but tend to use less lethal methods, such as suffocation or poisoning, and thus are more likely to survive Formal Operations Formal Operations • Formal operations - Piaget’s final stage of cognitive development, characterized by the ability to think abstractly. • • • • • They can use symbols to represent other symbols (math). Can find richer meanings in literature. They can think in terms of what might be, not just what is. They can imagine possibilities and can form and test hypotheses. Hypothetico-deductive reasoning - ability to develop, consider, and test hypotheses. Immature Aspects of Adolescent Thought • imaginary audience - adolescents often assume everyone else is thinking about the same thing they are thinking about. • personal fable - belief by adolescents that they are special, their experience is unique, and they are not subject to the rules that govern the rest of the world; the belief that the events of one’s life are controlled by a mentally constructed autobiography. • “Nobody understands me.”; “I will not get pregnant.” Heinz’s Dilemma • A woman is near death from cancer. A druggist has discovered a drug that doctors believe might save her. The druggist is charging $2,000 for a small dose—10 times what the drug costs him to make. The sick woman’s husband, Heinz, borrows from everyone he knows but can scrape together only $1,000. He begs the druggist to sell him the drug for $1,000 or let him pay the rest later. The druggist refuses, saying, “I discovered the drug and I’m going to make money from it.” Heinz, desperate, breaks into the man’s store and steals the drug. Should Heinz have done that? Why or why not? Kohlberg’s Theory of Morality • Level I: Preconventional morality (ages 4 to 10) - They obey rules to avoid punishment or reap rewards, or they act out of selfinterest Stage 1: Punishment/obedience orientation • Children obey rules to avoid punishment. Stage 2: Instrumental purpose and exchange • Children conform to rules out of self-interest and consideration for what others can do for them. Kohlberg’s Theory of Morality • Level II: Preconventional morality (ages 10 to 13 or beyond) concerned about being “good,” pleasing others, and maintaining the social order Stage 3: Good Boy/Girl Orientation • Children want to please and help others, can judge the intentions of others, and develop their own ideas of what a good person is. Stage 4: Law and order orientation • People are concerned with doing their duty, showing respect for higher authority, and maintaining the social order. They consider an act always wrong, regardless of motive or circumstances, if it violates a rule and harms others. Kohlberg’s Theory of Morality • Level III: Preconventional morality (early adolescence, or not until young adulthood, or never) - People recognize conflicts between moral standards and make their own judgments on the basis of principles of right, fairness, and justice. Stage 5: Social Contract • People think in rational terms, valuing the will of the majority and the welfare of society; “greatest good for the greatest number”. Stage 6: Universal and Ethical Principles • People do what they as individuals think is right, regardless of legal restrictions or the opinions of others. Critique of Kohlberg’s Theory of Morality • Kohlberg’s system does not seem to represent moral reasoning in non-Western cultures as accurately as in the Western culture in which it was originally developed. • Kohlberg’s typology unfairly categorized women as less morally and cognitive complex • Gilligan argued that men viewed morality in terms of justice and fairness while women put more importance of caring and avoiding harm. Psychosocial Development Identity versus Identity Confusion Identity versus Identity Confusion - an adolescent seeks to develop a coherent sense of self, including the role she or he is to play in society. Also called identity versus role confusion. • 3 major issues: the choice of an occupation, the adoption of values to live by, and the development of a satisfying sexual identity. • Fidelity: sustained loyalty, faith, or a sense of belonging to a loved one, friends, or companions; identification with a set of values, an ideology, a religion, a political movement, or an ethnic group. Identity Status — Crisis And Commitment (James E. Marcia) Crisis - a period of conscious decision making; Commitment - involves a personal investment in an occupation or ideology • Identity achievement (crisis leading to commitment) - characterized by commitment to choices made following a crisis, a period spent in exploring alternatives. • Foreclosure (commitment without crisis) - a person who has not spent time considering alternatives is committed to other people’s plans for his or her life. • Moratorium (crisis with no commitment yet) - a person is currently considering alternatives (in crisis) and seems headed for commitment. • Identity Diffusion (no crisis, no commitment) - characterized by absence of commitment and lack of serious consideration of alternatives. James Marcia’s Identity Statuses No Commitment No Crisis Experienced Crisis Experienced Commitment Made Diffusion Foreclosure Moratorium Identity achievement Gender Identity • Cisgender - a person whose gender identity corresponds to their sex assigned at birth. • Transgender is a term that refers to individuals whose biological sex at birth and gender identity are not the same. • Genderqueer to refer to a wide range of variable identities that may be neither fully male nor fully female Sexual Orientation Heterosexual – attracted to persons of the other sex. Homosexual – attracted to persons of the same sex. Bisexual – attracted persons of both sexes. Origins of Sexual Orientation • Although it once was considered a mental illness, several decades of research have found no association between homosexual orientation and emotional or social problems. • Similarities of brain structure and function between homosexuals and heterosexuals of the other sex. Sexual Behavior Why do some adolescents become sexually active at an early age? • • early entrance into puberty, poverty, • a history of sexual abuse or parental neglect, and • cultural or family patterns of early sexual experience • Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) Infections and diseases spread by sexual contact. Outcomes of Teenage Pregnancy Babies of teen mothers are likely to be premature or dangerously small and are at heightened risk of other birth complications. • heightened risk for health and academic problems, abuse and neglect, and developmental disabilities. Adolescent Rebellion Adolescent rebellion - Pattern of emotional turmoil, characteristic of a minority of adolescents, that may involve conflict with family, alienation from adult society, reckless behavior, and rejection of adult values. • more likely to be associated with variables such as abusive, indifferent, or neglectful parenting • Family conflict can have a significant impact on emotional distress • Negative emotions and mood swings are most intense during early adolescence Individuation and Family Conflict Individuation - Adolescents’ struggle for autonomy and personal identity. • Parents of young adolescents must strike a delicate balance between too much freedom and too much intrusiveness. • Collectivistic and individualistic societies. • Family conflict predicts multiple adjustment problems, including depression, anxiety, conduct problems, and problems with peers. • Problems arise when parents overstep what adolescents perceive as appropriate bounds of legitimate parental authority. • Teens are more likely to disclose information when parents maintain a warm, responsive family climate.
