Human Development - Test 3 (Chp. 9, 10, 11, 12)

What is Menarche? Who experiences it and what is the average age it occurs at?

A female’s first menstrual period; 12 yrs, lasts 3-5 years.

Why does Menarche last for 3-5 years?

Ovulation and menstruation are often irregular for years after menarche.

What is Spermarche? Who experiences it and what is the average age it occurs at?

A male’s first ejaculation; 13 yrs.

How does puberty begin?

With a hormonal signal from the hypothalamus to the pituitary gland.

Puberty: after the pituitary gland receives the hormonal signal from the hypothalamus, where does it send a message to? How?

Through the blood stream to the adrenal glands and the gonads to produce more hormones.

Puberty is an _____ marked increase in hormones.

Invisible.

Puberty affects the body, but also the brain. What are some new thoughts that come with puberty?

Sexual thoughts and a drive for independence.

Which hormone awakens sexual partner interest?

GnRH

What does GnRH do?

Promotes the enlargement of gonads, which increase their production of sex hormones (estrogen in females and androgens [mostly test] in males).

Which hormone in puberty causes adolescents to quickly react with fury, passion, or ecstasy?

Cortisol.

T or F: The body, brain, and behavior always interact.

True - REMEMBER THIS.

T or F: Emotions can increase hormones.

True.

T or F: Rising cortisol levels at puberty DO NOT increase the likelihood of anger

False.

Why is adolescence a peak time for the emergence of many disorders?

The body, brain, and behaviors are constantly interacting - more vulnerable to stress, substance use, and unhealthy habits.

What is circadian-rhythm?

Day-night cycle of biological activity that occurs every 24 hours;

What is eveningness? Why does it occur during puberty?

Eveningness is a delay in circadian-rhythm that causes a natural preference to sleep late at night and wake up later in the day; circadian changes often occur during puberty.

What is eveningness dangerous for adolescents?

It can lead to sleep deprivation which can lead to mood disorders, hypertension, diabetes, drug abuse, crime, and every other problem, especially among teenagers.

The slides say that _/4 high school seniors are sleep deprived.

¾ or 75%.

T or F: School schedules deprive teenagers of sleep.

True.

• Opening later can lead to higher attendance and graduation rates; strongest for students from low-SES homes.

Gender differences in hormones have marked effects on…

• Avg pubescence.

• Avg height spurt.

• Genetic influence; ethnicity.

How does body fat influence the start of puberty?

Hunger delays puberty; body fat precipitates puberty, especially for girls.

T or F: Emotional stress (like harsh discipline) precipitates puberty, especially in girls.

True.

T or F: Chemicals in food, water, and air can affect when puberty occurs.

True, but specifics are controversial.

What happens at the start of a growth spurt for adolescents?

They begin to eat more and gain weight.

The body schedules size increases at different times. What increases first…

• Weight or height?

• Muscle or internal organ growth?

• Core or extremities?

Weight > height; Muscle > internal organ growth; Extremities > core.

On average, females bodies have _____ as much body fat as male ones by the end of adolescence.

Twice.

Why are many pubescent children temporarily big-footed, long-legged, chubby, and short-waisted?

Extremities grow before core.

What are primary sex characteristics? What are secondary sex characteristics?

• Primary: parts of the body that are directly involved in reproduction, i.e. uterus, ovaries, testicles, and penis.

• Secondary: observable physical traits that are not directly involved in reproduction, but indicate sexual maturity, i.e. hair, breasts, adam’s apple.

Why are secondary sex characteristics important psychologically?

Females may feel insecure about breast size, waist, hips; males may feel insecure about temporary breast tissue and facial/body hair.

Before 1980, a belief in American culture was that males were sexually drive and more active than females, who thought sex was nasty. Is that true today?

No, recent students from 2021 have found that girls were, for the first time, more sexually active than boys.

What are some pregnancy complications that occur in adolescent younger than 16?

• Spontaneous abortion, high blood pressure, stillbirth, preterm births, even death.

Although teen births are declining worldwide, the U.S. rate in every ethnic group is…

Higher than other affluent nations.

Teen births are related to…

• Higher rates of infant abuse, neglect, and eventually hostility from family and everyone else.

Although the human body is designed to give birth at around age 20, babies are more likely to survive birth if their mother is…

About 30.

In half of U.S. cases, STI/STDs occur in people under the age of…

25; particularly high among sexually active adolescents, ages 12-18.

What future consequences does HPV have?

Increases risk of cancer later in adulthood; males, genital warts; females, cervical cancer.

Why have sex rates declined over the past 3 decades?

• Better sex education, fear of STIs, awareness of the hazards of pregnancy, increasing social isolation, more female education.

Puberty requires more calories than childhood, especially more…

Iron and calcium.

What does malnutrition influence?

• Circadian rhythm, drive for independence, and wish for peer acclaim.

David Elkind coined the term “adolescent egocentrism” what does it define?

• Thinking that leads to focus on self to exclusion of others.

  • Materialism; appearance.

What is Rumination (Elkind)?

• Obsessive thinking about self-focused concerns; influenced by egocentrism; may lead to later depression.

What is the imaginary audience?

• Believing that others are watching and taking not of appearance, ideas, and behaviors; creates self-consciousness.

  • Peers who are expected to understand, laugh, admire, or sympathize.

What are the different types of fables present in adolescents? Define them.

• Personal: adolescents belief that their thoughts, feelings, and experiences are more wonderful/awful than others.

• Invincibility: conviction that one cannot be harmed by anything that might defeat a normal mortal; unprotected sex or high-speed driving.

Piaget coined the term “Formal operation thought.” What does it describe?

• The ability to imagine all possible determinants, use more systemic logic, and think about abstract ideas.

  • Think about hypothetical thought, deductive reasoning, and inclusive reasoning.

Relating to formal operational thought (Piaget), what is hypothetical thought, deductive reasoning, and inductive reasoning?

• Hypothetical thought: reasoning w/ propositions and possibilities that may not reflect reality.

• Deductive reasoning: reasoning from a general statement to logical steps.

  • Ex. Patient has disease, so we will follow these steps in accordance to procedure.

• Inductive reasoning: reasoning from one or more specific experiences/facts to a form a general conclusion.

  • Ex. Patient has such and such symptom so they might have disease.

What is dual processing during adolescence?

• Two networks existing within the human brain; one for intuitive, emotional responses; one for analytical reasoning.

• Some suggest that one does not shift from concrete to formal thought, but rather they split into two parallel processes.

The maturation of what two systems leads to dual processing in adolescent cognition?

Limbic system and prefrontal cortex.

Which system matures first in adolescents, the limbic system or prefrontal cortex?

Limbic system.

What is the limbic system responsible for? What does its early maturation mean for adolescents?

Responsible for instinctual and emotional responses, leads to teens making impulsive and risky decisions based on their emotions.

Why does the limbic system mature first?

Pubertal hormones target emotional centers of the brain first, which leads to intense emotional rushes, desire for peer approval, and risky behaviors.

What does the prefrontal cortex control?

Executive function; long-term planning, inhibitory control, etc.

• Less developed in adolescents.

What is intuitive thought vs. analytical thought?

• Intuitive: belief, assumption, general rule; quick and powerful, feels “right.”

• Analytical: formal, logical, hypothetical-deductive; involves analysis of many factors whose interactions must be calculated.

What are some characteristics of dual processing?

• Understanding social context.

• Integrating intuitive emotions with analytical reasoning.

• Evaluate stereotypes and social norms critically.

• Understand that neither age nor intelligence alone determines logical reasoning.

Why do adolescents prefer emotions over analytical thinking?

• Comfort and familiarity.

• Social influence.

• Resistance to deep though/logical reasoning.

• Increased myelination and reaction time and fast and furious thinking.

Why are some choices made by adolescents seen as foolish by adults?

• Prioritization of social needs and evolutionary imperative over long-term considerations / established societal norms.

• Drive for independence & autonomy, challenging customs and traditions.

• Social warmth and peer admiration over long-term goals.

• Hormones prioritize immediate social rewards over long-term consequences.

According to Piaget, adolescent systematic, analytical thought is…

• Slow and costly, hindering immediate action.

What is secondary education?

Middle school & high school, ages 12-18.

T or F: High school graduates & college graduates live longer on average, than those who did not graduate high school.

True.

• Income, employment, and health impacts.

Why does the organization of secondary schools impact adolescents?

• Peer connections; class and classmate changes.

• Hidden curriculum, honors classes; feelings of alienation.

• Teacher organizational challenges; may not complement their strengths.

• School budget cuts; less extracurricular programs, less mentorship and growth opportunities.

What are growth mindsets? What are fixed mindsets?

• Fixed: person’s intellectual ability that is set early on, and does not change with effort or education (entity theory).

• Growth: belief that intellectual ability and skill can grow and change depending on work and effort (incremental theory).

Fixed mindset students…

• Compete for grades and teacher attention.

• Quit trying when topics get difficult; assume inability to learn.

Growth mindset students…

• Help each other, laugh together, cooperate on class projects.

• Seek challenges; change opinions on what is learned, and choose challenging courses.

Why did statewide exams go from 28 in 2010 to 8 in 2023?

Schools developed performance standards; schools focused too much on middling students and teaching to the test.

• It caused reduced learning for high and lower achievers, hence the change.

What is PISA?

• Programme for international student assessment.

• Tests only 15-year-olds; measures learning useful in adulthood; reflects national policy more than geography and ethnicity.

What is a question every young person want to know?

“Who am I?”

Adolescents want to search for…

A consistent understanding of oneself.

Define identity…

• Consistent definition of one’s self as a unique individual in terms of roles, attitudes, beliefs, and aspirations.

Describe Erikson’s fifth stage of development, identity vs. role confusion.

People wonder “who I am” but are confused about which of many possible roles to adopt.

What is identity achievement?

• When a person reconsiders the goals and values of their parents and culture to forge their own identity.

What is role confusion?

When adolescents have no clear identity, but fluctuate from one persona to another.

What is foreclosure (Erikson)

• Erickson’s term for premature identity formation.

  • When adolescents adopt their parents’ or society’s roles and values without questioning or analysis.

What is moratorium?

An adolescent’s choice of a socially acceptable way to postpone making identity-achievement decisions.

• Ex. taking wide ranges of classes; joining many activities; enrolling in college with no specific goal; taking a gap year; live in another nation as an exchange student.

What are the aspects of identity mentioned by Erikson?

• Religious.

  • Rebellion; questioning of faith, but similar to the one they grow up with.

• Political.

  • Tend to be more liberal.

• Vocational.

  • Career paths; modern education allowing students to pursue higher education; encouraging diverse career aspirations.

  • Specific types of work (e.g., realistic, artistic, and social) correlate w/ long-term career satisfaction and overall well-being.

• Gender.

  • Hypothetical thinking leads to adolescents questioning binary and rejecting traditional ideas.

  • Binary.

• Ethnic (not mentioned by Erikson).

  • Sense of belonging, attachment, and identification w/ a particular ethnic group/cultural heritage.

  • Ethnic pride linked to higher achievement; concerns contribute to mental health struggles.

  • Societal pressures to define their ethnic identity impact academic motivation & overall well-being.

T or F: Most adolescents religious identities initially align with those of their parents, include percentage.

True; 80%.

Adolescents are more likely to identify as _____ than religious.

Spiritual.

T or F: Adolescents DO NOT adopt the political views of their parents and ARE NOT more likely to vote if they live with voting parents.

False.

Adolescents often hold political views that mirror their surroundings, can these change later in life?

Yes. Adolescence is a critical period for forming political attitudes; deeper shifts in political allegiance typically occur later in life.

Expanding on gender identity: explain each term: gender binary, transgender, cisgender, LGBTQ+.

• Gender binary: idea that there are only two genders.

• Transgender: someone whose gender identity is not the one they were assigned at birth.

• Cisgender: someone whose gender identity is the same one that they were assigned at birth.

• LGBTQ+: Lesbian, gay, bi, trans, queer, intersex, asexual, etc.

What is intersectionality?

• Refers to how various aspects of identity (e.g. race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, SES, etc.) interact.

T or F: Intersectionality can create challenges and conflicts within the lives of adolescents.

True; different aspects of one’s identity can class.

• Daughter who wants to become a doctor, but her parents want her to be a traditional wife.

• LGBTQ+ teenager in a religious community that condemns their sexual oritentation.

T or F: Family relationships become less important for adolescents as they become older.

False; relationships affect identity, expectations, and daily life.

• Parents shift from guidance to providing advice; peers become more important; siblings influential.

Why is technology harmful and healthy for building relationships during adolescence?

• Some relationships can reinforce destructive behavior, i.e. addictive gaming, cutting, race hate, gun use, anorexia.

• Relationships help adolescents build peer connections.

T or F: Once adolescence is underway, at age 15 or so, peer influence may be stronger than parent influence.

True; more influential than parents for empathy, multi-ethic tolerance, LGBTQ+ acceptance, drugs, technology.

What are the four aspects of family closeness?

• Communication.

  • Do family members talk openly with each other?

• Support.

  • Do they rely on one another?

• Connectedness.

  • How emotionally close are family members?

• Control.

  • Do parents allow independence?

What can family closeness result in?

• Buffering the turbulence of adolescence.

  • Nonconflictual conversation correlates w/ teen mental health.

  • Friendly family relationships crucial for well-being.

What is parental monitoring?

• Parents ongoing knowledge of what their kids are doing, where, and with whom.

T or F: Parental monitoring has a negative effect on adolescent development.

False; positive effect in context of warm and supportive relationship, helps adolescents become confident, well-educated adults, avoiding drugs and risky sex.