Adolescent Psych (CSU PSY-465)

Exam 2 study guide:

Chapter 4

• Changes in parent-child relationship quality through adolescence: fight about mundane things. Parents view issues in terms of right/wrong but teens view issues as matters of personal choice

• Baumrind’s four parenting styles (e.g., authoritarian, authoritative): 

  • Authoritarian: parents use punitive, absolute, forceful discipline; emphasis on obedience

  • Authoritative: parents use warmth, firm control, rational, issue-oriented discipline

  • Indulgent/permissive: high responsiveness & low demandingness; concerned with child’s happiness > rules

  • Indifferent: low responsiveness & demandingness; adult-centered, passive, dismissive

• Parental demandingness: degree to which parent expects & insists on mature, responsible B from the child

• Parental responsiveness: degree to which the parent responds to the child’s needs in an accepting, supportive manner

• Behavioral genetics (twin and adoption studies): shared & non-shared environmental influences

• Marital conflict Family Stress Model of Economic Hardship: Family economic hardship → parental stress → negative parenting → adol difficulties

  • Econ hardship leads to econ pressure in the family; when econ pressure is high, parents are at an increased risk for emotional distress & B problems; elevated parental stress predicts increased marital conflict & less nurturing & involved parenting; low -parental nurturance & involvement lead to greater emotional, B, cognitive difficulties in children

• Diathesis-stress model: interaction between predisposition (diathesis) + environmental trigger (stress) = outcome (often used to explain MI)

• Differential susceptibility theory: same genetic tendencies that made an individual especially susceptible to develop problems when exposed to adverse environmental influences also make them especially likely to thrive when exposed to positive environmental influences

Chapter 5

• Changes in the peer context from middle childhood to adolescence: peers > family time

• Cliques: small groups that range from 2-12 people (avg 5-6); form due to common activities or friendship

• Crowds: large groups of peers; based mainly on reputation (nerds, jocks, druggies)

  • Serve as reference groups against which individuals can compare themselves… identity

• Instrumental (proactive) aggression: deliberate & planned & selective → can increase popularity

• Reactive aggression: unplanned & impulsive → can lead to being less liked by peers

• Perceived popularity: hot much status/prestige an individual has (highly variable across contexts)

• Sociometric popularity: how well-liked an individual is

• Relational aggression: acts intended to harm another via deliberate manipulation of their social standing & relationships… can lead to high levels of psych distress & CMD (esp for girls)

• Peer rejection: major source of stress by adolescents

• Selection vs. socialization: both responsible for similarities between friends & influences

  • Selection: individual’s attributes → environmental experiences

  • Socialization: environmental factors → individual’s attributes & B

• Bullying: patterns of aggression; effects: increased risk of low self-esteem, CMD

Chapter 6

• Changes in school enrollment over time: increases due to states requiring school attendance; increases in enrollment until 1970 then leveled off

• Racial/ethnic composition of schools: being the minority is hard on students (can lead to school disengagement, lower grades, more frequent absences, may feel less attached to school)

• School and classroom climate: includes quality & character of school life, reflects norms/goals/ values/teaching & learning practices

  • Supportive classroom climate: teachers are responsive & demanding; better achievement

• School transitions: grades, engagement, academic motivation tend to drop (but standardized test scores stay the same/don’t drop)

• Student engagement: supportive school climates are associated with higher academic achievement & good parental involvement is associated with positive outcomes