Adolescent Development
Summary Adolescence – Laurence Steinberg
Introduction – The study of Adolescent Development
Where should we draw the line between adolescence and adulthood? Is a 20-year-old college
student who lives at home an adolescent or an adult? No right or wrong.
Adolescence is a time of growing up, moving from immaturity to maturity, preparation for the
future. Adolescence is a period of transitions: biological, psychological, social, economic.
Early adolescence = ages 10-13, corresponding to the junior high or middle school years.
Middle adolescence = ages 14-17, corresponding to the high school years.
Late adolescence = ages 18-21, corresponding to the college years.
Emerging adulthood = ages 18-25, during which individuals make the transition from
adolescence to adulthood.
Puberty = the biological changes of adolescence.
Rite of passage = a ceremony or ritual marking an individual’s transition from one social
status to another, especially marking the young person’s transition to adulthood.
This book uses a framework for studying adolescence (based on John Hill). This model has
three basic components:
The fundamental changes of adolescence Universal changes.
o Biological = onset of puberty
o Cognitive = emergence of more advanced thinking abilities
o Social = transition into new roles in society
The contexts of adolescence The effects of these changes are nót universal (some
feel attractive during puberty, others don’t). The psychological impact
of the fundamental changes is shaped by the environment. We cannot
understand development without examining the environment in which it
occurs (ecological perspective). There are four main contexts in which
young people spend time.
o Families Dramatic changes in family relationships during adolescence.
o Peer group Positive and negative influences.
, o Schools What can schools do the help prepare for adulthood?
o Work, leisure, mass media Influences adolescents’ attitudes and beliefs.
The psychosocial developments of adolescence Psychosocial refers to aspects of
development that are both psychological and social in nature.
o Identity = discovering who we are as individuals (self-esteem, self-
conceptions).
o Autonomy = establishing a healthy sense of independence.
o Intimacy = forming close and caring relationships with other people.
o Sexuality = expressing sexual feelings and enjoying physical contact with
others.
o Achievement = being successful and competent members of society.
o Psychosocial problems = drug and alcohol use and abuse, depression etc.
Theoretical Perspectives on Adolescence
Biosocial theories
Hall’s Theory of Recapitulation Influenced by Darwin. Believed that the
development of the individual paralleled the development of the human
species. Infancy is equivalent to the time when we were primitive. Adolescence
is civilization (period of storm and stress).
Dual Systems Theories Two different brain systems develop simultaneously. One
with processes like reward, punishments and social-emotional information:
during adolescence. Another that regulates self-control and advanced thinking
abilities (planning): still matures after adolescence. Main challenge of
adolescence is to develop better self-regulation to avoid imbalance.
Organismic theories = biological changes important, but also the ways in which contextual
forces interact with and modify these biological factors.
Freudian Theory Development causes psychosexual conflicts. Puberty throws the
adolescent into a period of psychological crisis (by reviving old conflicts,
buried in unconscious). Adolescents need to detach from their parents in order
to develop normally.
Eriksonian Theory Internal, biological developments move the individual from
one developmental stage to the next. Erikson stressed the psychosocial
conflicts. Eight stages of psychosocial development, each characterized by a
crisis. Adolescence revolves around the identity crisis. Challenge is to emerge
with a coherent sense of who one is.
Piagetian Theory As children mature, they pass through distinct stages of
cognitive development. Adolescence marks the transition from concrete to
abstract thought. This is influenced by internal biological changes (of
developmental period) and by changes in the intellectual environment (of the
individual).
Learning theories = stresses the context in which behavior takes place.
Behaviorism (Skinner) Emphasized the processes of reinforcement and
punishment as the main influences on adolescent behavior. Adolescent
behavior is the product of the various reinforcements and punishments.
Social Learning Theory (Bandura) Adolescents learn how to behave not only by
, reinforcement and punishment, but also by watching and imitating those
around them (peers, figures in mass media).
Sociological theories = attempt to understand how adolescents as a group come of age in
society. What factors have groups of adolescents in common?
Adolescent Marginality (Kurt Lewin & Edgar Friedenberg) About the difference
in power that exists between the adult and the adolescent generations.
Adolescents are prohibited from occupying meaningful roles in society and
experience frustration.
Intergenerational Conflict (Karl Mannheim & james Coleman) Adolescents and
adults grow up under different social circumstances and therefore develop
different sets of attitudes, values and beliefs. As a result, there is tension
between adolescents and adults.
Historical and Anthropological theories = adolescent issues depend on social, political and
economic forces present at a given time.
Adolescence as an Invention Adolescence is entirely a social intervention. 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.
Social conditions define the nature of adolescent development, not biological.
Anthropological Perspectives (Ruth Benedict & Margaret Mead) Societies vary in
the ways they view and structure adolescence. Adolescence is a culturally
defined experience: some view it stressful (in more modern societies); others
calm (in non-industrialized societies).
HS 3 – Social Transitions (p. 69)
Changes in social definition often bring with them changes in relationships with others. New
questions and concerns about intimacy. Many parents prohibit their children from dating till
the age of majority (legal age for adult status).
Laws about statutory rape (sex between two individuals when at least one of them is below
legal age of consent) and other sexual behavior typically differentiate between individuals
who have and have not attained adult status.
Adolescence is longer today than it has ever been in human history. We tend to use some sort
of social indicator to draw the line between adolescence and adulthood (moving out of one’ s
parents’ home, starting a full-time job).
Menstruation and marriage are probably the best markers to see is adolescence has gotten
longer. We see that the time in between went from 2-4 years up to around 15 years. Reasons:
Children live in the same house as their parents longer.
The financial cost of living independently increased, so economic ‘maturity’ takes
longer.
Education nowadays is longer and more formal.
Inventionist = Theorist who argues that the period of adolescence is mainly a social
invention.
