The Psychology of Adolescence and Emerging Adulthood

Flashcards for reviewing key concepts from Dr. Edward Curmi's lecture notes.

What is a central conflict during adolescence?

The struggle between the need to stand out and the need to belong.

What areas of development occur during adolescence and youth?

Physical/ sexual/cognitive development, Socio emotional development - Identity, Social contexts – family, peers and school

What did Aristotle say about Adolescence?

Ability to choose - stage theorists

What did Plato say about Adolescence?

Adolescents should study science and mathematics (REASON)

How were adolescents viewed in the Middle Ages?

Miniature adults

What did Rousseau say about Adolescence?

An adolescent is not an adult

What theory did stanley Hall devolop?

Storm and stress

How was adolescence viewed by Margaret Mead?

Stress free

What is meant by the Inventionist view of Adolescence?

Schools, work and economics

What characterized the invention of adolescence?

Prolonged residence of young people in the parental home, longer periods of formal schooling, increasing consciousness about the stages of young people’s development

What are the Sub stages of adolescent and youth development ?

Early, middle and late, youth and emerging adulthood

What developmental issues do Adolescents and young people face?

Work and relationships

What did Havighurst (1952) say about Transition?

Exploration

What did Levinson (1978) say about Transition?

intimacy and commitment to goals

What did Erikson (1968) say about Transition?

Vocational choice

What important goal do older adolescents and young adults strive towards during transitions?

INDEPENDENCE

What are psychological interpretations of transitions?

Life transitions are periods in time when individuals experience major changes.

What outcomes are commonly seen in late modernity?

PROTRACTED TRANSITIONS

What is dependency as it relates to youth?

An extension of the period during which young people remain dependent

What are Coles' three main transitions?

Transition from school to work, Domestic transition, Housing transition

What is emerging adulthood?

New life stage, Protracted transition to adulthood

What are different types of transitions?

Traditional transitions, Extended or protracted transitions, Fractured transitions, Yo yo transitions

What characterises critical Look the concept of tradition?

Imagery of process , fluidity and change

What term does Adelson use for widespread generalizations about adolescents?

Adolescent generalization gap

According to Hebdige, when is youth present in society?

in our society, youth is present only when its presence is a problem

What model do most academic researchers or policy makers use?

Storm, stress and age

How do academics view youth?

widespread construction of youth in general, and specific groups of young people in particular, as ‘problems’

What issues may surround problem youth?

Risk behaviour or at risk

How are young men and women constructed in relation to risk?

Young men are more likely to be presented as actively ‘deviant’, especially in aggressive forms, and especially if they are working class and/ or black. Young women, however, are more likely to be constructed as passively ‘at risk’

What is the current trend in psychology regarding adolescence?

Psychologists are now calling for a focus on the positive side of human experience and greater emphasis on hope, optimism, positive individual traits, creativity, and positive group and civic values, such as responsibility, nurturance, civility, and tolerance.

What is a positive view of adolescence?

The negative stereotyping of adolescents is overdrawn

What did Daniel Offer and his colleagues (1988) find in their cross-cultural study?

at least 73 percent of the adolescents had a positive self-image

What is adolescence a time of?

evaluation, decision making, commitment, and finding a place in the world

What influences contexts?

historical, economic, social, and cultural factors

What is development?

The pattern of change that begins at conception and continues through the life span.

What characterises Biological processes?

Physical changes within an individual's body.

What characterises Cognitive processes?

Changes in thinking and intelligence.

What characterises Socioemotional processes?

Changes in relationships, emotion Identity, personality, and social contexts.

What are the periods of development?

Pre natal period, Infancy, Early childhood, Middle childhood, Late childhood Adolescence Early adulthood Middle adulthood, Late adulthood

What are the Substages of Adolescence?

Early adolescence 10-13, Middle adolescence 14 – 16/18, Late adolescence 18-22

What characterises physical changes in late adolescence?

Physical/sexual changes complete

What characterises Cognitive changes in late adolescence?

Capacity for abstract thought in place

What characterises Emotional changes in late adolescence?

Family influence more in balance with peer influence Serious intimate relations begin to develop

What characterises Behavioral changes in late adolescence?

Capacity for realistic risk assessment

What are the five main features of emerging adulthood?

trying out various possibilities, especially in love and work, age of instability, is the most self-focused age of life,It is the age of feeling in-between, in transition, neither adolescent nor adult, age of possibilities

What are possible markers of adulthood?

Economic independence, Self-responsibility, Independent decision making

What is resilience?

adapting positively and achieving successful outcomes in the face of significant risks and adverse circumstances.

What are the theories of adolescent development?

Psychoanalytic theories, Cognitive theories, Behavioral and social cognitive theories, Ecological contextual theories, Life course theory, Social psychological perspectives, Eclectic theory

What are the stages Freud said people developed through?

Oral Stage, Anal Stage, Phallic Stage, Latency Stage, Genital Stage

What are the components of Personality Structure according to Frued?

Id, Ego, Superego

What charachterises psychosexual development during the genital stage

rapid increase in sexual tensions demanding gratification

What did Stanley Hall say were key aspects of Sturm and Drang (1916)?

conflict with adults, mood disruptions, and risky behavior

What is the Main developmental task, according to Blos/Anna Freud 1968?

Freeing the self from emotional dependency on parents/adults

What are the Stages of Erikson's theory?

Trust Vs mistrust, Autonomy vs. doubt, Initiative vs. guilt, Industry vs. inferiority, Identity vs. role confusion, Intimacy vs. isolation, Generativity vs. stagnation, Integrity vs. despair

According to Erikson, what characterises Trust Vs mistrust?

hope - sensory distortion - withdrawal

According to Erikson, what characterises Autonomy vs. doubt?

will power- impulsivity -- compulsion

According to Erikson, what characterises Initiative vs. guilt?

purpose - ruthlessness -- inhibition

According to Erikson, what characterises Industry vs. inferiority?

competence -narrow virtuosity -- inertia

According to Erikson, what characterises Identity vs. role confusion?

fidelity - fanaticism -- repudiation

According to Erikson, what characterises Intimacy vs. isolation?

love - promiscuity -- exclusivity

According to Erikson, what characterises Generativity vs. stagnation?

care - overextension -- rejectivity

According to Erikson, what characterises Integrity vs. despair?

wisdom- presumption -- sapientism

Why is adolescence so important in Erikson's theory?

the degree of success with which one has mastered the adolescent crisis.

What is Psychosocial reciprocity?

Importance of the peer group

What are the Identity statuses that James Marcia descibes?

Identity achievement status, Foreclosure status, Moratorium status (in midst of crisis), Identity diffusion status

What key conceptes does Harry stack Sullivan explore in his his Interpersonal theory of adolescent development?

Highlights the importance of interpersonal relationships and communication

What key conceptes does the Cultural anthropology perspective explore ?

Sovereignty of culture over biology in shaping human nature

What key conceptes does Kurt Lewin explore?

Adolescence is a period of transition during which young people must change their group membership

What are the Stages of Piagets Cognitive Developmental Theory?

Sensorimotor Stage, Preoperational Stage, Concrete Operational Stage, Formal Operational Stage

According to Piaget, what is Inter propositional thinking?

imagining what the other player might do in a game

According to Piaget, what is Combinatorial or systemic thinking?

understanding how different parts of a system can influence one another

What key conceptes does Robert Selman’s Theory of interpersonal Understanding explore?

How people think about other people, how people come to know their social world

What key conceptes does Vgostsky’s cognitive theory explore?

The major theme of Vygotsky's theoretical framework is that social interaction plays a fundamental role in the development of cognition.

How does cognition develop according to Vygotsky?

Cognitive skills are mediated by words, language, and forms of discourse.

What are key concepts of Skinners theory?

Rewards, Punishments, Behaviour is a result of environment

What are key concepts of Bandura's theory?

Bobo doll, Imp of observation, We can regulate and control our behaviour

What are the key components of Ecological theory according to Bronfenbrenner?

Microsystem, Mesosystem, Exosystem, Macrosystem, chronosystem

What is the microsystem?

setting in which an individual lives - Family, peers, school and neighbourhood

What is the mesosystem?

Relations between microsystems or connections between contexts

What is the exosystem?

Experiences in a setting in which the adolescent is not involved influences what he/she experiences in the immediate setting

What is the macrosystem?

The culture in which an individual lives

What is the Chronosystem?

The patterning of environmental events and transitions over the life course and socio historical circumstances