Psych-Adolescence and Sexual Orientation

Adolescence

the transition from childhood to adulthood

“Storm and stress”

tension between biological maturity and social independence

Puberty

the period of sexual maturity during which a person becomes capable of reproducing

Early maturing boys

more popular, self-assured, and independent but also at risk for alcohol use, delinquency, and premature sexual activity

Early maturing girls

experience a mismatch between physical and emotional maturity that may encourage search for older teens 

The teenage brain

maturation of the frontal lobes lags behind that of the emotional limbic system, producing irrational and risky behaviors

Which psychologist examined “moral reasoning”

Lawrence Kohlberg

Preconventional morality 

before age of 9, obey rules to avoid punishment or gain concrete rewards 

ex. “If you save your loved one, you’ll be a hero.”

Conventional

occurs in early adolescence, uphold laws and rules to gain social approval from adults

ex. “If you steal the medicine, everyone will think you’re a criminal.”

Postconventional

adolescence and beyond

questions system and actions reflect belief in basic rights and self-defined ethical principles

ex. “People have a right to live.”

Identity vs. role confusion

struggle in adolescence where 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

Intimacy 

the ability to form close and loving relationships

How do parents influence adolescents

play less of a role than in childhood

parent-child arguments increase but most adolescents report liking their parents

parents are more important when it comes to education and orderliness

How do peers influence adolescents

peers influence behavior and are important for finding the road to populairty and inventing styles of interaction among people of the same age 

Emerging Adulthood

includes the transitionary time from about age 18 to the mid-twenties where young people are no longer adolescents but have not yet reached full independence

ex. feeling in-between

Sexual orientation

our enduring sexual attraction towards a specific group:

• homosexual

• heterosexual

• bisexual

Has same-sex behavior been observed in other species?

yes, but not intercourse

What percent of men and women in the US report some same-sex sexual contact within their lives?

5% of men and 13% of women

Is homosexuality linked with problems in parent child relationships?

no

True or false, there is a lack of evidence for environmental causes of homosexuality

true

What are some gay-straight brain differences?

• anterior commissure is larger in gay men than straight men

• gay men’s hypothalamus reacts the same as straight women’s to the smell of sex-related hormones

Sexual attraction in what insect can be genetically modified?

fruit flys

Male homosexuality is usually transmitted from what side of the family?

the mother’s

For homosexual nature

advocate that brain differences between heterosexual male brain, homosexual male brain, and heterosexual female brain in the hypothalamus region that deals with mounting behaviors proves biological nature

Against homosexual nature 

advocate that there is not evolutionarily advantages to being homosexual, such as no survival of the species, and no passing genes to next generation

ex. while some homosexual behaviors do exist in other species, homosexual sex does not