Course: Lifespan Development (PSYC 290) Required Resources Read/review the following resources for this activity: See Attached Documents from LessonMinimum of 2 scholarly sources Instructions Your te

Adolescence

Cognitive Development in Adolescence

Famed researcher David Elkind posited that cognition in adolescence is marked by egocentrism. Your textbook tells us that Elkind found that adolescents are far more self-conscious than younger children and that they are prone to create an "imaginary audience" and personal fable (p.368). However, Piaget doesn't find adolescence to just be a stage of turmoil and uncertainty, but rather he argues that adolescents reach the formal operational stage and develop a new ability to reason, an increased acumen to problem-solve, and they are better able to make decisions based on logic. This is partly due to increased attention-span.

Course: Lifespan Development (PSYC 290) Required Resources Read/review the following resources for this activity: See Attached Documents from LessonMinimum of 2 scholarly sources Instructions Your te 1

If you reflect on your own adolescent experience, was it easier for you to solve complex mathematical problems than it was to solve social problems? Why do you think that this was? As we move through the various types of development in adolescence, you may find it easier to answer this question.

Reflection

Jean Piaget theorized that children were not ready for abstract thought until they reached adolescence. If this is the case, are children taught abstract concepts too early in school for them to succeed?

Physical Development in Adolescence

Our textbook describes three major areas of physical development in adolescence: puberty, the brain, and sexuality.

It is explained that researchers have found it nearly impossible to pinpoint the beginning and end of puberty, but rather they have marked by the maturation of a child's sexuality, a dramatic increase in height and weight. Males begin to experience penile and testicular growth, kinky pubic hair, underarm hair growth, voice changes and eventually facial hair growth. Females will begin menarche (their first menstruation), the growth of pubic hairs, and the formation of breasts to mark the beginning of puberty.

Puberty is triggered by a complex set of hormones being released; this can begin as soon as the age of 7 or 8. In boys, the peak of the growth spurt typically comes late in the sequence of physical development. Each teenager has an internal model, or mental image, of the normal or right timing for puberty. Discrepancies between an adolescent's expectations about what should happen in adolescence (e.g. grow a mustache, develop breasts, etc.), can have a significant impact on the adolescent psyche if those expectations aren't met.

Reflection

In the section on "Cognitive Development in Adolescence" we saw that in this stage, adolescents become preoccupied with what others think of them. How do you think it could affect a young person if they do not reach these physical developmental milestones on time?

Socioemotional Development in Adolescence

Take a look at the information linked below that highlights the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale.

Link: https://fetzer.org/sites/default/files/images/stories/pdf/selfmeasures/Self_Measures_for_Self-Esteem_ROSENBERG_SELF-ESTEEM.pdf (Links to an external site.)

Do you think that the survey accurately tells the story of self-esteem?

Pull out a piece of paper and a pen! Write down your definition of self-esteem. Now, think back to your adolescence. Use the following scale of adolescent self-esteem to evaluate your level of self-esteem in adolescence.

Very high … High … Neither High Nor Low … Low … Very Low

In your textbook, self-esteem is defined as the overall way that we evaluate ourselves (p. 371)! Research points to how self-esteem is affected by gender, socioeconomic status, peer relations, and other factors. The textbook also explains how self-esteem affects relationships later in life (p. 371). With this research in mind, how would you rate your self-esteem now? Has it changed? If so, why do you think that it has changed?

You may have already drawn the connection between our identity and self-esteem. Erikson’s pivotal work on how our identity is an integral part of our adolescence can be seen throughout the remainder of the chapter: culture, race, religion, and family are just a few of the predictors that govern our identities as adolescents.

Now, on the same sheet of paper, which of the factors addressed in the textbook would you say were the biggest contributors to your identity as an adolescent?

If you see a dramatic change in how you rate your self-esteem now compared to when you were 13 years old, don’t let that surprise you. Our self-esteem reflects our perceptions. And based on what we have learned about the adolescent brain and reasoning, it would make sense if our perceptions of ourselves were not exactly grounded in reality!

This chapter doesn’t just focus on self-esteem and identity, but it also addresses the issues that arise when there is conflict in these areas and the factors that contribute to them. For instance, in this stage of adolescence, juvenile delinquency, suicide, and depression can all have significant effects on young people and those around them.