Saskia Ensel
Complete summary: Lectures and literature for
Adolescent Development.
Preparation for exam-1.
Year 2022-2023. Universiteit Utrecht
Inhoud
Introduction: The Study of Adolescent Development ................................................................ 1
Chapter 1: Biological Transitions ............................................................................................... 4
Chapter 2: Cognitive Transitions ............................................................................................. 15
Chapter 3: Social Transitions .................................................................................................. 24
Chapter 8: Identity.................................................................................................................... 30
Chapter 9: Autonomy ............................................................................................................... 40
Less Guilty by Reason of Adolescence (Steinberg, 2003) ..................................................... 41
Introduction: The Study of Adolescent Development
Adolescence is a period of transitions: biological, physiological, social, economic. During
adolescence, individuals become interested in sex and biologically capable of having
children. Adolescence = the period between the onset of sexual maturation and the
attainment of adult roles and responsibilities.
We can think of development during adolescence as involving a series of transitions from
immaturity into maturity. Some of these passages are long and some are short; some are
smooth and others rough. It is quite possible that an individual will mature in some respects
before they mature in others.
Early, Middle and Late Adolescence
Social scientists who study adolescence differentiate among early adolescence (age 10-
13), middle adolescence (14-17) and late adolescence (age 18-21). Some writers also
have suggested that a new phase of life, called emerging adulthood, characterizes the
early and mid-20s.
A framework for studying adolescent development; By Hill (1983), three components:
1. The fundamental changes of adolescence
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Encompasses biological, cognitive and social dimensions. According to Hill, 3 features of
adolescent development give the period its special flavor and significance: (1) the onset
of puberty (biological), (2) the emerge of more advanced thinking abilities (cognitive) and
(3) the transition into new roles in society (social):
• Biological transitions → puberty involves changes in the young person’s physical
appearance and the development of the ability to conceive children.
• Cognitive transitions → compared with children, adolescents are much better
able to think about hypothetical situations and about abstract concepts.
• Social transitions → in some cultures, the social changes of adolescence are
marked by a formal ceremony – a rite of passage.
Secondary changes → the psychological consequences of the interaction between
the primary changes and the settings, organized in the domains of identity,
autonomy, intimacy, sexuality and achievement.
2. The contexts of adolescence
The effects of the biological, cognitive and social changes are not uniform for all young
people. Puberty makes some adolescents feel attractive and self-assured, but makes
others feel ugly and self-conscious. This is due to the shaping of the environment.
According to the ecological perspective on human development, whose main
proponent was Bronfenbrenner (1979), we cannot understand development without
examining the environment in which it occurs. In modern societies, there are 4 main
contexts in which young people spend time: families, peer groups, schools and work and
leisure settings.
3. The psychosocial developments of adolescence
Social scientists use the word psychosocial to describe the aspects of development that
are both psychological and social in nature. They represent basic developmental
challenges that we face as we grow and change: (1) discovering and understanding who
we are as individuals – identity; (2) establishing a healthy sense of independence –
autonomy; (3) forming close and caring relationships with others – intimacy; (4)
expressing sexual feelings and enjoying physical contact with others – sexuality; and (5)
being successful and competent members of society – achievement.
Theoretical perspectives on adolescence
• Biosocial theories → what experts on adolescence disagree about is just how important
the biological changes are in defining the psychosocial issues of the period. The most
important biosocial theorists was G. Hall (1904), who took inspiration from Darwin. For
Hall, the development of the individual was determined primarily by instinct and hardly
influenced by the environment. Hall believed that the hormonal changes of puberty
caused upheaval, both for the individual and for those around them. Because this
turbulence is biologically determined, it is unavoidable.
Hall is known for:
o Recapitulation theory (= the development of the individual reflects the
development of the species).
o Storm and stress (= it is normal for all adolescents to go through a period of
storm and stress as a result of biological changes).
Arnett (1999) reviewed the idea of storm and stress. He thought that this theory
oversimplified a complex issue. There are many adolescents who navigate this
interval with minimal difficulties.
Margaret Meade (1920) questioned storm and stress in all cultures, thought is
was an invention of the Western culture.
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Dual systems theories → dual systems theories stresses changes in the
anatomy and activity of the brain. Dual systems theories emphasizes the simultaneous
development of two different brain systems – one that governs the way in which the brain
processes rewards, punishments and social and emotional information, and another that
regulates self-control and advanced thinking abilities such as planning or logical
reasoning. The arousal of the first system takes place in early adolescence, while the
second system is still maturing. This creates maturational imbalance.
• Organismic theories → organismic theorists recognize the importance of the biological
changes of adolescence but also take into account the ways in which contextual forces
interact with and modify these biological forces. Three major organismic theorists are:
Freud (1938), Erikson (1968) and Piaget and Inhelder (1958).
For Freud, development was best understood in terms of the psychosexual conflicts
that arise at different points in development. According to Freud, puberty temporarily
throws the adolescent into a period of psychological crisis by reviving old conflicts over
uncomfortable sexual urges that had been buried in the unconscious.
The work of Erikson was built on that of Freud, he also believed that internal
biological developments moved the individual from one development stage to the next.
Erikson stressed the psychosocial, rather than the psychosexual, conflicts faced by the
individual at each point in time.
For Piaget, development was best understood by examining changes in the nature of
thinking. In his theory, adolescence marks the transition from concrete to abstract
thought.
• Learning theories → learning theorists stress the context in which behavior takes place.
Learning theorists have little to say specifically about adolescence as a developmental
period because they assume that the basic processes of human behavior are the same
during adolescence as during other periods of the life span. There are two general
categories of learning theorists: behaviorists and social learning theorists.
Behaviorists emphasize the processes of reinforcement and punishment as the main
influences on adolescent behavior (Skinner, 1953). Adolescents’ behavior is nothing
more or less than the product of the various reinforcements and punishments they’ve
been exposed to.
Social learning theorists such as Bandura, also emphasize the ways in which
adolescents learn how to behave, but they place more weight on the processes of
observational learning and imitation.
• Sociological theories → sociological theories of adolescence attempt to understand
how adolescents, as a group, come of age in society. They focus on the factors that all
adolescents or groups of adolescents have in common by virtue of their age. Two
themes have dominated: adolescent marginality and intergenerational conflict.
Some writers have claimed that many of the problems we associate with
adolescence have been created, in part, by the way in which we have structured the
adolescent experience, treating adolescents as if they are more immature than they
actually are and isolating them from adults.
Theorists such as Mannheim (1952) and Coleman (1961) stressed the fact that
adolescents and adults grow up under different social circumstances and therefore
develop different sets of attitudes, values and beliefs. As a consequence, there is
inevitable tension between the adolescent and the adult generation.
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• Historical and anthropological perspectives → historical perspectives, such as those
offered by Elder (1980), Kett (1977) and Hine (1999), stress that adolescence as a
developmental period has varied considerably from one historical era to another. As a
consequence, it is impossible to generalize about such issues as the degree to which
adolescence is stressful. Historians would say that these issues all depend on the social,
political and economic forces present at a given time.
One group of theorists argue that adolescence is entirely a social invention.
They believe that the way in which we divide the life cycle into stages is nothing more
than a reflection of the political, economic and social circumstances in which we live. In
other words, social conditions, not biological givens, define the nature of adolescent
development.
Chapter 1: Biological Transitions
Puberty: an overview
Technically, puberty refers to the period during which an individual becomes capable of
sexual reproduction. More broadly, however, puberty encompasses all the physical changes
that occur in adolescents as they pass from childhood into adulthood. Puberty has 4 physical
manifestations:
1. A rapid acceleration in growth, resulting in increases in height and weight.
2. The development of primary sex characteristics, including the further development of
the gonads (sex glands), which results in a series of hormonal changes
3. The developmental of secondary sex characteristics, including changes in the
genitals and breasts, and the growth of body hair.
4. Changes in the brain’s anatomy and activity as a result of hormonal influences.
The endocrine system
The endocrine system produces, circulates and regulates
levels of hormones. Hormones are highly specialized
substances that are secreted by one or more endocrine glands
and then enter the bloodstream. Glands are the organs that
stimulate particular parts of the body. Many of the hormones
activate certain brain cells, called gonadotropin-releasing
hormone neurons.
The endocrine system receives its instructions from the
central nervous system. When a particular hormonal level in
the body dips below the endocrine system’s set point for that
hormone, secretion of the hormone increases; when the level
reaches the set point, secretion temporarily stop. Such a
feedback loop becomes increasingly important at the onset of
puberty. Before birth, the HPG (hypothalamus, piruitary,
gondads) axis developed involving three structures: the
pituitary gland (controls hormone levels), the hypothalamus
(controls the pituitary gland, concentration of GnRH neurons),
