Question 2 brain development in adolescent and impact on emotion and behaviour

GOOD LUCK GIRL

Brain regions for Brain development: (2)

• Pre-frontal cortex - region in the brain that deals with decision-making and impulse control

• The limbic system - body’s emotional nervous system that regulates our emotions, memories and behaviours

What do both brain regions do

• Both departments experience functional and structural changes.

• Adolescence is the 2nd critical period in the brain development as after childhood, adolescence is the second window for the brain to do the process neuroplasticity (brain’s ability to adapt and change to respond to the experienced exposed to)

This impacts identity, social skills and emotional regulation

Brain Organisation (5 months - late childhood) Brain changes

• Brain goes through a series of reorganisation, a period of refining, especially in the prefrontal cortex and limbic system

• during adolescents, synaptogenesis continues, especially in the prefrontal cortex which is involved in decision making, planning and self regulation

• white matter fibre tracts develop between neuron’s to connect different brain regions, forming functional brain networks.

Brain Organisation Impact on Emotion and Behaviour

• the structured formation of brain networks and different regions connect and communicate

• as the formations of brain structure mature, adolescents gradually improve within their reasoning, planning and emotional control. but as areas such as the pre-frontal cortex are still developing, teens may show impulsivity and mood swings

Mylination

• Oligodendrocytes (liquid protein substance) produce myelin (white matter acts like an insulation on electrical wires) which wraps around axons as a protective layer

• It acts as an electrical insulator

• Increases the speed at which impulses travel down the axon and thus improved signal transmission

Myelination key functions

• speeds up nerve signal transmission: myelin allows electrical impulses to travel rapidly along axons

• supports coordination and thinking: faster communication between brain regions

• strengthens brain networks: connects areas of the brain involved in reasoning, memory and ER

• myelination is important as its linked to faster processing speed, better attention and learning capacity

Myelination impacts on emotion and behaviour

• speeds up communication between brain regions by insulating axons

• teens respond faster to situations which leads to decision making skills and emotional reactions

• gradual myelination in the PFC means impulsivity and risk taking may occur

• myelination of connections between the PFC and limbic system helps improve emotional regulation (although takes time so teens may overreact emotionally or struggle with empathy.)

Synaptic Pruning

• synaptic pruning is the brain’s way of tidying. It removed extra/unused synapses (connections between brain cells) to make the brain wok more efficiently

• brain strengthen’s useful, frequently used connections and gets rid of weaker ones (faster, efficient and organised)

• linked with loss of grey matter

Importance of synaptic pruning

• like trimming a tree to make it stronger, pruning helps refine the brains wiring

• improves communication between different brain areas, especially those involved in thinking, memory and emotion

• tuning prepares the bain for adulthood, supporting better decision making, problem solving and emotional control

Synaptic Pruning emotional and behavioural impacts

• as pruning removes weak unused connections this leads to a more efficient, focused brain, improving self-control, concentration and emotional insight

• pruning can be based on experience, so teens become more specialised in what they practice (e.g social skills, reasoning)

• it can cause temporary confusion, mood swings or inconsistent behaviour as networks reorganise

• Enhances emotional maturity over-time but during the process, some behaviours may seen erratic or overly emotional

Neuro Developmental plasticity and sensitive periods

• the brains ability to adapt and change.

• it continues into adolescence, though it becomes more selective. During this periods, it helps refine and strengthen important brain functions

sensitive periods show heightened neuro-plasticity, meaning it can adapt and change easily, which happen during rapid periods of growth.

Neuro Plasticity emotion and behaviour impact

• high plasticity in adolescence means teens are sensitive to social, emotional and environmental influences

• environmental experiences can have long lasting pos/neg effects and teens can learn skills quickly and repeated behaviours strengthen related neural pathway

• reward system active = risk tasking and emotional reactivity

• + experiences = shape healthy behaviours

• - experiences = may impact emotional regulation

Grey Matter Changes in The Brain

• made up of neuronal cell bodies, dendrites and synapses found in the brainstem, cerebrum and cerebellum

• grey matter starts to increase in childhood, but peaks in early adolescence, then declines (prunes) during adolescence

  • this is where synaptic pruning removes unused connections

• results in brain becoming more efficient and specialised in thinking memory and emotional regulation

White Matter Changes in The Brain

• made of myelinated axons that carry electrical signals between different brain regions.

• neuronal tracts involved in conducting, processing and transmitting nerve signals between the different brain regions

• insulation speeds up signal transmission between brain areas

• the increase in white matter is due to myelination (improving connectivity and processing speed)

• process strengthens long range neural connections

Why does grey matter decrease in adolescence

during early development, the brain overproduces synapses to allow for flexibility in learning experiences.

synaptic pruning and weakening occurs in adolescence, deleting unused connections - resulting in a reduction in grey matte volume (ESP PFC)

Grey Matter impact on emotion and behaviour

• early adolescence, grey matter is still dense and unrefined, which may cause emotional overreactions, poor impulse control and difficulty reading social situations

• as pruning progresses, adolescents gradually show better decision-making, emotional regulation and mature social responses

White matter impact on emotion and behaviour

• as white matter volume increases steadily throughout adolescence (esp PFC) = improved connectivity between brain regions

• improves connectivity helps with emotional regulation, self control and planning

• as white matter networks are still maturing, adolescents may experience mood swings, inconsistent judgement and heightened emotional responses.

How does Ecological Systems Theory (bronfenbrenners) explain the impact of brain changes on adolescent emotion and behaviour

• Microsystem: impulsive emotions affect close relationships.

• Mesosystem: stress spills from school to home.

• Exosystem: parent/job issues impact emotions.

• Macrosystem: culture shapes views on teen behaviour.

• Chronosystem: brain and life events affect growth over time.

• adolescent brain changes influence emotions and behaviour by interacting with multiple environmental layers—from immediate relationships to broader cultural and life factors.

Limbic System impacts on emotion and behaviour

• LS includes amygdala and the reward system develops earlier than the PFC

  • adols are more emotionally reactive and sensitive to rewards, but ability to self regulate and plan ahead is maturing

  • results in risk taking behaviours, esp when influenced by peers

• is highly active and sensitive to rewards /9social approval and excitement)

Pre-frontal Cortex

• still developing (over LS) makes it harder to evaluate L-T consequences

• adols show heightened stress reactivity due to increased activity in the amygdala and a more reactive HPA Axis (stress response)

Peer Relationships

• limbic systems is intertwined here due to its strong emotional and reward processing, affecting adolescent behaviour

• myelination and neuro plasticity increase brain response to social feedback -/+

  • adolescents become sensitive to social aspects

  • acceptance, comparison, rejection

  • taking higher risk for peer approval

• feels deep anxiety and shame during social conflicts due to pruning as a result of earlier experience. Where ER networks in the brains white matter is weakened and grey matter decreases resulting in higher emotional intensity and poor processing system