Exam 1 - Adolescent and Devlopment (From Lectures 1-7)

Chapter 1-3

What is adolescence?

period between childhood roles and adult roles

True or false: adolescents have different boundaries for different purposes

true

At what stage in adolescence does reproductive capacity mature?

puberty

Does brain maturation occur in adolescence?

yes

What other types of maturation occurs during adolescence?

cognitive and social maturation

Does puberty start earlier or later than it did back then?

earlier

What impact does education being extended have on adolescents?

complete independence and autonomy come later, long-term household formation is deferred, child-bearing is deferred

What age/phase does early adolescence occur?

9 or 10 yrs old for some, about 13 years old, middle school and junior high

What age/phase does middle adolescence occur?

14-17 years old, high school

What age/phase does late adolescence occur?

18-21 years old, college

Who proposed the term “emerging adulthood” as a developmental period?

Jeffrey Arnett

What are some characteristics of emerging adulthood?

continued economic dependence on parents, instability in residence, instability inemployment, instability in relationships, continued sense of unbounded possibilities

What are some factors the influence trajectories of an adolescent’s path to adulthood?

local education and employment opportunities, community norms, socio-economic status of parents, educational expectation of parents, educational aspirations of individual, positive influences in life (parent, teacher, etc.)

What are some myths/stereotypes about adolescence?

more moody, hormonal, more problematic

True or false: early experiences DETERMINE adolescent development

false

True of false: early experiences INFLUENCE adolescent devlopment

true

What are some examples of early experience influence on adolescent development?

pre-natal nutrition, stress, drug and toxin exposure, 

What secures attachment in infancy and detachment in adolescence?

parenting

What aspects of cultural influences are a part of early adolescent development?

racial/ethnic religions, intellectual capital, social capital

Who theorized a developmental framework that focuses on changes of adolescence, context in which development in adolescence occurs, and psychosocial developments?

Hill

Which doctor (PHD) established the field of adolescent development?

G. Stanley

Who was Stanley influenced by when proposing individual development as a recapitulation of human social evolution?

Darwin

What did G. Stanley Hall propose as to what adolecense is?

A reflection of past human behavior where the world was violent and ungovernable

What theories of adolescence involve biology?

Hall’s recapitulation of social evolution, dual systems theory, belsky’s life history theory

What does the dual systems theory propose?

deep brain emotional systems mature before pre=frontal - parietal systems mature

What increases risk taking?

sensitivity to social rejection

What makes planing, consideration of possible consequences, generation of alternatives, inhibition of impulses difficult?

PFC (pre-frontal corte) immaturity

What does life history propose?

Adverse childhood experience (including pre-natal) programs the individual for a “fast-life” strategy in a hostile environment. Differently, benevolent upbringing programs the individual for a “slow-life” strategy in a benign environment.

True or false: both a hostile and benign environment can be adaptive and maladaptive

true

Ex: Brian was born prematuraly, was sometimes neglected by his mother, and was treated harshly by his father even as a toddler. Life history would predict which of the following:

• Stunted physical development

• delayed puberty

• accelerated puberty

accelerated puberty

What does Erikson propose for adolescents?

psychosocial stages

What are some methods psychologists use to study adolescence?

Naturalistic observation (ethnographic studies, participant observation, correlational experimental studies (surveys, brain imaging, etc.), cross-sectional and longitudinal studies, cross-cultural comparative studies, and animal research

Why do psychologists study adolescence?

Interesting behaviors observed in many adolescents, problems of childhood may worsen or remit, new problems may emerge, executive function

What is executive function?

Basic function for everyday decisions

When do humans start having executive function?

everyone born with some degree of executive function

Name some interesting behaviors of adolescents.

Egocentrism and endless social comparison

What is adolescent egocentrism?

Idea of one having an imaginary audience or personal fable (world revolves around them)

Who in the adolescent studieds field indluenced educational policies and had a rigid view of general roles and education for girls/women?

G. Stanley Hall

What theories were psychologists Hall and Steinberg credited for finding?

• Founding adolescence —> Hall

• Dual systems theory (adolescents risk taking) —> Steinberg

How do we study adolescence?

Empirically - based on data

What is puberty?

brain-neuroendocrine process in early adolescence that stimulates rapid physical changes and ends before adolescence is over

What triggers the start of puberty?

unknown: hereditary?

What changes during puberty?

endocrine system, weight, body fat, increased leptin

What does leptin do?

binds to receptors in hypothalamus, kisspeptin neurons grow, producing kisspeptin which triggers the release of GnRH (gonadotropin releasing hormone)

What are some other possible factors of puberty?

Weight at birth, speed of weight gain in infancy, childhood obesity, sociocultural factors

What are androgens?

male sex hormones - testosterone

What is estrogen?

female sex hormone - estradiol

What happens when boys experience rising levels of testosterone?

Physical changes: development of genitals, pubic, axillary, body and facial hair, height, muscle mass, voice

also gain sexual desire and activity

What happens when girls experience rising levels of estradiol?

physical changes: breast development, pubic hair, axillary hair, uterine development, skeletal changes, changes in body fat

Do endocrine system changes occur fast or slow during adolescence?

slow

Role of hypothalamus?

regulates hormones, interacts with pituitary

Role of pituitary?

master gland that produces hormones; influences growth; interacts with adrenal gland

Name growth hormones involved in endocrine system.

gonadotropins, TSH

Role of thyroid gland?

pituitary interaction for growth

Role of adrenal gland?

produces androsterones

What are the gonads, or sex glands, for each gender?

testes - males, ovaries - females

What hormone does the hypothalamus release that trigger the pituitary gland?

GnRH

What hormones does the pituitary gland release that trigger the gonads?

LH and FSH

What do the gonads release which then is regulated by hypothalamus (positive feedback loop)?

androgens and estrogens

What GH does the pituitary gland secrete?

Somatotropin

What does somatotropin do?

growth and skeletal maturation directly or interaction of thyroid gland

true or false: the set point for hormones does not change

false, it changes

In the beginning of puberty, when is GH secreted?

at night

Later in puberty, when is GH secreted?

during the day, but in low amounts

What point of puberty does adrenarche mark?

The earliest beginning of puberty

During adrenarche and continuing through puberty, adrenal glands secrete adrenal androgens such as?

dehydroepinandrosterone (DHEA)

What else happens during adrenarche?

Sweat gland secretions in which body odor develops, unpigmented pubic hair may develop

What causes adrenarche?

increased luls of 2 hormones produced by the zona reticularis of the adrenalgland

What is gonadarche?

period about 2 years after start of adrenarche that involves the maturation of primary and secondary sexual characteristics

What are primary sexual characteristics that mature during gonadarche?

ovaries and uterus in females, tested in males, menarche and spermarche

What are primary secondary characteristics that mature during gonadarche?

pubic hair, breast, and genitals

What age, in non-Latino white girls does gonadarche begin?

9-10 years old

What age in African American girls does gonadarche begin?

8-9 years old

On average, when do boys begin gonadarche?

10-11 years old

Does high weight and obesity affect pubertal development?

yes, it is linked to earlier pubertal development

What can delay menstruation for girls?

anorexic adolescents with dramatic weight drops and females who participate in certain sports (like gymnastics and swimming)

What may delay puberty for boys?

undernutrition

What effect does the exposure to sun have on puberty?

may result in earlier puberty because more sun = less melatonin (melatonin slows puberty)

Where (geographically) do individuals live who experience puberty earlier?

closer to the equator

True or false: adolescents in developed countries and large urban areas reach puberty earlier than in less developed countries and rural ares

true

In the US, what race of females and males enter puberty earlier than Latinos and non-latinos?

african americans

What are some examples of early experiences that may be linked to earlier pubertal onset?

adoption, father absence, non-related male in home, low socioeconomic status, family conflict, maternal harshness, child malnutrition, maternal substance use

When does peak pubertal growth spurt occur in girls and boys?

11.5 for girls, 13.5 for boys

How much earlier do children in the US mature physically than those in European countries?

a year earlier (around 12 yrs old)

What age do US girls begin puberty?

8-9 years old

What is precocious puberty?

extremely early puberty, can occur as early as 4 years old

Importance of thyroid gland?

produces hormones that are essential for growth hormone to stimulate growth

What does puberty end with?

the ossification of growth plates on long bones

What psychological difference does girls have with boys in regards to body image and puberty?

girls are less happy with their bodies due to an increase of body fat while boys are more satisfied with their bodies due to an increase in muscle mass

Is early maturation more or less favorable for boys?

More favorable

Why might late maturation for boys be more favorable?

identity formation and career development

What happens psychologically to girls who experience early maturation?

increased vulnerability to a number of problems

How and when is GnRH and LH released?

Every 2-3 hours in the luteal-phase

Negative cause of increased levels of androgens in boys?

violence and acting-out problems

Negative cause of increased levels of estrogen in girls?

depression

true or false: risk-taking increases in adolescence

true

Are adolescents with more resources (such as youth activities and adult role models) more or less likely to engage in risks?

less likely

True or false: parental monitoring and communication skills linked to high level of adolescent risk-taking

false, linked to lower level of risk-taking

Examples of adolescent risk-taking activities

drinking, drug use, early and unprotected sexual activity, dare-devil activities

What are the leading causes of death in adolescence and emerging adulthood?

MVAs (motor vehichle accidents), suicide, homicide