Early Adolescence
Girls: 11-13 Boys: 12-14
Physiological
Development
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Sexual Maturation
 Onset of puberty: 1st signs are breast budding in girls, testicular enlargement in boys,
growth of pubic hair begins in both; menarche in girls, voice deepening and facial hair
growth in boys (puberty takes an average of 4 years to complete)
 Anxiety about body image
 Sense of loss of control
 Experimentation with body begins
 Own values not defined; values are still those of parents, but beginning to be questioned
 Right and wrong still seen as black and white issues; grays do not exist
 Internal control not developed
 Clear limits and boundaries are necessary
Integrity/Values
Growth reaches peak height velocity – see growth spurts happening
Weight gain
Hormonal changes (see onset of puberty below)
Brain is still developing – overproduction of gray matter, primarily in frontal lobe
Frontal lobe is not fully developed, so adolescent relies on other brain structures to
process information, such as recognizing emotional expression (happens in the amygdale,
which is the primitive emotional center of the brain)
 Experience sleep-phase delay (i.e., fall asleep later & wake up later)
Cognitive
Development
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Time of concrete or literal thinking
World is “here and now,”;
Unable to plan or think into the future
Egocentric: “Everyone is looking at me.”
Identity/Personality
Development
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Questioning self: “Am I normal?” “What am I turning into?” “I’m not ready for this.”
Beginning to look outside of family for self-definition
Role models, heroes, older siblings, family, and parents are all important in various ways
Peers are beginning to become more important: “I want to belong”
Intimacy/Sexual
relationships
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Same sex play begins - does not indicate sexual orientation
Intimacy is defined through “best friends” and peer group membership
Friends begin changing because of variations in rate of development
Cliques develop
Independence
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Friends are becoming more important than family
Complaints about lack of privacy and increasing desire for “alone” time
Time away from parents and time spent with friends both increase
Fluctuation between clinging to adults and rebelling against them
Keep information concrete; don’t try to project too far into the future
Accept and recognize the teen’s feelings about puberty changes and body anxiety
Provide reassurance that the teen is normal
Provide clear limits and rules
Teach skills to deal with peer pressure
How to have a
positive encounter*
Middle Adolescence
Girls: 13-16 Boys: 14-17
Physiological
Development
 Body changes are in full swing
 Body dimensions gradually changing – in girls, hips becoming wider; waist becoming
narrower; in boys, shoulders and chests becoming broader
 Brain is still developing – unused gray matter now being pruned out
 Myelination is steadily increasing, improving processing speed & response time
Sexual Maturation
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Integrity/Values
 Begin developing and testing own values - reject parental values
 Able to see others’ point of view and begin developing awareness of others’ feelings
Cognitive
Development
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Identity/Personality
Development
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Intimacy/Sexual
relationships
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Independence
 Conflict and classic rebellion against family
 Separation continues in earnest
 Feel that parents can’t do anything right
How to have a positive
encounter*
 Encourage your teen to examine and clarify own values and beliefs
 Provide information on and support for practicing abstinence, contraception and safer
sex
 Help the teen to make connections between decisions and behaviors today and one’s
life in the future
 Be accepting of short-term identity experimentation
Intense sexual feelings develop
Dating begins and becomes primary (“Puppy love”)
Average age (16 or younger) by which 50% of adolescents have first sexual experience
Risk of pregnancy is high
Abstract thinking begins
Able to consider hypothetical situations
Connections between “today” and “tomorrow” begin
Intellectual curiosity develops
Period of experimentation, idealistic thinking
Feelings of omnipotence and no fear of death
Friends, rather than parents, define who you are, what you do, and what’s “cool”
Egocentric: “I satisfy me!”
Identify changes from day-to-day, from friend-to-friend, and from group-to-group
Concern about what is attractive, fulfilling male or female cultural and sex roles; may
accept or completely rebel against them
 Parents are considered “uncool” and an embarrassment
Pairing begins
Sexual activity may begin
Discomfort with sexuality is common
Friends and peer group are the core of life
“Love object” is the most important thing in the world
Late Adolescence
Girls: 16-19 Boys: 17-19
Physiological
Development
 Physical changes leveling off
 Frontal lobe becoming more developed – evident by better decision making ability
 Myelination continues to increase in the frontal lobe (changes continue to occur into
the mid 20s)
Sexual Maturation
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Integrity/Values
 Refining and clarifying of values - large swings and inconsistencies less common
 Internal controls based upon moral principles and conscience are now more fully
developed
 May return to family’s values
Cognitive
Development
 Ability to think abstractly has developed
 Can gather and synthesize information to inform a decision or present a persuasive
argument
 Future goals more clearly and realistically defined
 Realization of own limitations and mortality
Identity/Personality
Development
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Intimacy (Sexual
relationships)
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Pairing more realistic and less changeable
Relationships more stable and increasingly based upon “real” people and real qualities
Peer group membership is important but one-to-one relationships more important
Movement from “I” to mutuality and real sharing
Satisfaction of other(s) can be as important as satisfaction of self
Independence
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Separation from parents becomes complete (psychologically, if not physically)
Beginning of self-sufficiency and care
Establish new, adult relationship with parents
Family tensions decrease
Act as the sounding board for the teen’s exploration of own identity as an adult
Encourage examination and clarification of own values and beliefs
Provide information on and support for practicing abstinence, contraception, and safer
sex
How to have a positive
encounter*
Less confusion regarding body and changes
Greater sense of self control
Better, more realistic sense of self; looks, body image, how one compares to others
Sexual behavior more prominent
Arriving at concept of self as an adult
Need to accept the self that has emerged
Reflecting back to earlier years to gain better picture of present self
Decreased importance of peer group; individual is now primarily self-identified and
less other-identified
 Peers are important but more able to resist peer pressure
 Greater sense of self-control