Adolescence

Module 9

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Adolescence

Adolescence Overview  Physical Development  Cognitive Development  Social Development Emerging Adulthood Today psychologists believe that development is a lifelong process.

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Adolescence

 Adolescence  the transition period from childhood to adulthood  extending from puberty to independence  Puberty   the period of sexual maturation when a person becomes capable of reproduction 3

Primary Sexual Characteristics

During puberty primary sexual characteristics the reproductive organs and external genitalia develop rapidly. 4

Secondary Sexual Characteristics :the nonreproductive traits such as breasts and hips in girls and facial hair and deepening of voice in boys develop. Pubic and armpit hair in both sexes.

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Brain Development

…at adolescence, selective pruning of the neurons begins. Unused neuronal connections are lost to make other pathways more efficient.

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Frontal Cortex

The frontal cortex lags behind the limbic system’s development.

Hormonal surges and the limbic system may explain teen impulsiveness.

Remember how everything negative in Jr. High was a disaster…?

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Cognitive Development

Adolescents’ ability to reason gives them a new level of social awareness. 1. Their own thinking.

2. What others are thinking.

3. What others are thinking about them.

4. How ideals can be reached. They criticize society, parents, and even themselves.

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Developing Morality

Kohlberg (1981, 1984): formulated stages of moral development.

He posed moral dilemmas…such as “Should a person steal medicine to save a loved one’s life?” Link Where is morality at PBS 14:08 9

Gilligan’s criticism…

• Women score lower than men… • Kohlberg stages derived from interviews with males.

• For males, advanced moral thought revolves around rules, rights, and abstract principles.

• For women, morality centers not on rights and rules but on interpersonal relationships and the ethics of compassion and care.

Why is something immoral?

• Would be all right for a brother and sister to have voluntary protected sex?

• Would it be all right for a family to eat a pet dog that had been killed by a car?

• Would it be all right to break a deathbed vow to visit your mother’s grave?

3 Basic Levels of Moral Thinking

1.

2.

3.

Preconventional Morality: Before age 9, children show morality to avoid punishment or gain reward.

Conventional Morality: By early adolescence, social rules and laws are upheld for their own sake.

Postconventional Morality: Affirms people’s agreed-upon rights or follows personally perceived ethical principles.

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Woman needs drug and can’t afford it, man steals it…should he have done this?

• 1 Should not steal because he will be jailed • 2 Should steal because wife will repay him later • 3 Should steal because he loves his wife and has duty to care for her, she and rest of family will approve • 4 Should steal because he has a duty to care for her or not steal because it is illegal.

• 5 Should steal because life is more important • 6 Should steal because of the principle of preserving and respecting life

Moral Action

Moral action involves doing the right thing.

People who engage in doing the right thing develop empathy for others and the self-discipline to resist their own impulses.

Learning to behave in moral ways requires… 1. Consistent modeling 2. Real life experience 3. Situational factors that support moral actions Delay Gratification link at TED 6:02 24

Erikson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development

Mnemonic

Approximate age Stage Infancy (1st year) Toddler (2nd year) Preschooler (3-5 years) Elementary (6 years puberty) Description of Task Trust vs. mistrust If needs are dependably met, infants develop a sense of basic trust.

Autonomy vs. shame Toddlers learn to exercise will and and doubt do things for themselves, or they doubt their abilities.

Initiative vs. guilt Preschoolers learn to initiate tasks and carry out plans, or they feel guilty about efforts to be independent.

Competence vs.

inferiority Children learn the pleasure of applying themselves to tasks, or they feel inferior.

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Erikson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development

Mnemonic link

Approximate age Stage Description of Task Adolescence Identity vs. role (teens into confusion 20’s) Young Adult Intimacy vs.

(20’s to early isolation 40’s) Teenagers work at refining a sense of self by testing roles and then integrating them to form a single identity, or they become confused about who they are.

Young adults struggle to form close relation ships and to gain the capacity for intimate love, or they feel socially isolated.

Middle Adult Generativity vs. (40’s to 60’s) stagnation The middle-aged discover a sense of contri buting to the world, usually through family and work, or they may feel a lack of purpose.

Late Adult Integrity vs.

(late 60’s and despair up) When reflecting on his or her life, the older adult may feel a sense of satisfaction or

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failure.

Adolescence: Social



Development

 Identity   one’s sense of self the adolescent’s task is to solidify a sense of self by testing and integrating various roles Intimacy  the ability to form close, loving relationships  a primary developmental task in late adolescence and early adulthood 27

Parents and Peers are influential. Peers more than parents sometimes…

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Emerging Adulthood 18-25

During this time, young adults may live with their parents and attend college or work. 33

EXPLORING PSYCHOLOGY

(7th Edition in Modules) David Myers Aneeq Ahmad Henderson State University, James A. McCubbin, Ph.D.

Clemson University, Amy Jones, Garber edits Worth Publishers, © 2008 34