ADOLESCENCE: PSYCHOSOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

Ages 11 to 18What is the effect of social relationships on adolescents?

HOW DO ADOLESCENTS DEVELOP AN IDENTITY?

Erikson Identity vs. role confusion

“Who am I”

WHAT ARE PROBLEMS DEVELOPING AN IDENTITY?

Identity diffusion Don’t know, don’t care Few commitments to goals or values Apathy

Foreclosure Premature identity formation Adopting parents’ or society’s roles and values

rather than exploring their own Moratorium

Postponing identity achievement decisions College may be one way

IN WHAT AREAS DO ADOLESCENTS DEVELOP AN IDENTITY? Religious identity

Often similar to parents Political identity– Often similar to parents

Vocational identity Sometimes similar to parents Adults often change vocations

Sexual (Gender) identity Accepting socially approved roles and behavior of their

gender Gender identity disorder

(Now called “Gender Dysphoria”) Does not identify with their biological sex

HOW DO ADOLESCENTS RELATE TO ADULTS?

Conflicts with parents Peaks in early adolescence More a sign of attachment rather than distance

Distant relationships ignore the other

Neglect Can be destructive for teenagers

(Even though they want to feel independent)

HOW CAN A FAMILY DEVELOP CLOSENESS? Four aspects of closeness

Communication Can both talk openly?

Support Do they rely on each other?

Connectedness Emotional closeness

Control How do parents exercise control?

Encourage or limit adolescent autonomy

HOW CAN A FAMILY DEVELOP CLOSENESS? (CONT.) Parental monitoring

Monitoring of peers, friends, websites Positive – When warm, supportive Negative - When overly restrictive and

controlling

DO YOU REMEMBER? According to Erikson, what is the main goal of

adolescence? What happens when identity is not yet

achieved? Give an example of each of the three

What can build closeness in a family? What is an example of parental monitoring?

WHAT IS THE EFFECT OF PEER PRESSURE? Conforming to friends in behavior, dress, and

attitudes

WHAT IS THE EFFECT OF FRIENDS? Selection

Choosing friends with common values and interests E.g. Academics, music, athletics

Facilitation Friends encourage behavior similar to the peer

group Positive

Studying together, church, sports Destructive

Skipping school, drinking, drugs

HOW DO THEY LEARN ABOUT SEX? Peers

Strongly influence sexual behavior Only half U.S. adolescents discuss pregnancy or

STD’s before being sexually active Parents

Underestimate need for information Wait too long before talking about sex

School Preferred by most parents Sex education varies dramatically by nation Abstinence-only programs

No significant impact on sexual activity Does education change behavior?

Depends more on family, peers, and culture than classes

WHAT ABOUT SUICIDE? Suicidal ideas (Ideation)

Ideas are common – completed suicides are not Adolescents are less likely to kill themselves than

adults are Gender differences

More girls attempt suicide than boys Boys are 4 times as successful Methods

Males shoot themselves Females use pills and hanging

DO YOU REMEMBER? What is the effect of peer pressure? What are the concepts of peer selection and

peer facilitation? What most strongly influences adolescent

sexual behavior? Which sex is most apt to complete a suicide?

Why do you think that is?

WHAT ABOUT DRUG USE AND ABUSE? Age

Widespread ages 10-25 then decreases

Drug use before 18 = best predictor of later drug use

20% of adolescents never use drugs Gender

Boys use more drugs more often than girls “If I don’t smoke, I am not a man.”

WHAT ARE THE EFFECTS OF DRUGS? Tobacco

Slows down growth Damages heart, lungs, brains,

and reproductive systems Dad’s emphysema

Alcohol Heavy drinking may permanently

impair memory Damaged hippocampus

May impair self control Damaged prefrontal cortex

Denial of problems Problems get worse

WHAT ARE THE EFFECTS OF DRUGS? Marijuana People who regularly smoke marijuana are

more likely to: Drop out of school Become teenage parents Be unemployed

Affects: Memory Motivation

HOW CAN WE PREVENT DRUG ABUSE? Focus on friends and peers

First use is social Delay first use

Younger when starting = more likely addiction Massive ad campaigns

E.g. Smoking Generational forgetting

Each generation forgets what previous generations learned

Drug users tend to be more emotional & less reflective Interference with prefrontal cortex

DO DRUG SCARE TACTICS WORK? May increase drug use

Drugs seem exciting Adolescents recognize exaggeration Show a way to show defiance

DO YOU REMEMBER? What ages is drug use most common? What are the effects of tobacco, alcohol, and

marijuana? What are useful strategies for preventing

drug use? What about scare tactics?