Adolescent Development finished

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Feb 20, 2024

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Running head: ADOLESCENCE AND DEVELOPMENT 1 Biological, Psychological, Cognitive, and Social Issues Related to Adolescent Development Eastern Gateway Gabriella Zuzan

ADOLESCENCE DEVELOPMENT 2 Adolescence and Developments Lifespan development in psychology is the study of human development from the time of conception to the time of death (Baltes, 1987). The primary goal of lifespan development is to examine and describe specific characteristics of different time frames as well as envision various dynamic interaction processes. Dynamic interaction processes involve the interconnection between a person’s past, present, and future (Kail& Cavanaugh, 2018). Although lifespan development is among the newest profound areas of psychology, it is deep-rooted to the developmental study and research of the elderly and children. According to Kail& Cavanaugh, (2018), the idea that early childhood development, which revolves around early family encounters, affects the later life of a child is deducible from centuries of childhood research, substantially from a behavioral viewpoint. Additionally, the psychological perception that genetic composition affects all aspects of life including personality, and brainpower has been essential to the biological and psychological understanding of human development for many years (Kail& Cavanaugh, 2018). Also, lifespan development recognizes and appreciates these early life effects and genetic compositions, but it also holds that other aspects of life such as cohort, culture, and contexts are equally compelling in shaping a person’s life. One central belief of lifespan development is that change is inevitable and it is always possible (Baltes, 1987). For this reason, people’s genetic makeup, as well as their early childhood, affects them, but they do not determine who they are (Baltes, 1987). Therefore, lifespan development essentially deals with age-related behavioral changes that people go through from the time they are conceived to when they die, and it takes

ADOLESCENCE DEVELOPMENT 3 six-time frames namely: parental; development and infancy, childhood, childhood (early and middle) adolescence, adulthood (first and middle), and old age. The purpose of this paper is to investigate a specific developmental lifespan time frame (youth), and its relevant psychological, cognitive, biological, and social issues and development. Adolescence is a time frame a person undergoes significant developmental changes at all levels including cognitive, behavioral, socially, and biologically. Simmons (2017) defines youth as a period of development between puberty and the ability of relative self-reliance. Therefore, biological events largely determine the beginning of adolescence, and social events define its end. This developmental stage is characterized by vast physical transformations, behavioral changes, advancement in cognitive skills, and hormonal changes, and it marks the point of transition from childhood to adulthood (Simmons, 2017). Being a transition from one- time frame to another, adolescence involves drastic changes in cognitive behavior, self- consciousness, and identity of oneself. According to Newman & Newman (2017), youth is a stage of major qualitative shifts in the way of thinking to a point where adolescents become more conscious of whom they are, of their feelings, and their character in general. Adolescents also tend to be more self-reflective because they gain the ability to be more introspective and are more willing to learn about their purpose in life than the prior stages of lifespan development (Billy & Grady, 1993). Also, adolescents become more capable of holding a variety of profound concepts, which helps them think more strategically than their previous time frame. Furthermore, an empirical study conducted by Newman & Newman (2017) on neural and cognitive development during adolescence shows that there are massive brain developments during adolescence, and modern brain imaging techniques have confirmed their research findings. More so, these brain imaging

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ADOLESCENCE DEVELOPMENT 4 techniques have given insight on the orientation of structural brain evolution and maturity during adolescence. Adolescence is a developmental stage of social and biological, and psychological shifts. For instance, social human cognitive processes require steering progressively close and complex relationships between people, and they continue developing throughout the time frames of life span development (Billy & Grady, 1993). Therefore, like other time frames in lifespan development, various sociocultural contexts shape adolescence. Sociocultural issues related to puberty involve the number of new skills they are supposed to master, the number of new relationships they are supposed to build, and the old ones that they should maintain, the variety of life choices presented to them, and the social settings arranged by various social institutions that they enroll to among others. Additionally, adolescents are faced with various social issues that can affect their social development during this stage. For instance, according to Lewis, Kremer, Douglas, Toumborou, Hameed, Patton, & Williams (2015) identity-related issues, which in turn affect the self-esteem of adolescents, are among the most prevalent social issues affecting adolescents. As mentioned earlier, most people are more eager to learn about themselves during adolescence in a quest to attain self-reliance. Lewis, Et al. (2015) confirms that it is essential for children to develop positive self-esteem and self-image for them to make a successful transition from childhood to adolescence and eventually to adulthood. However, some teenagers acquire a negative self-image due to the physical, biological and psychological changes that take place during adolescence. Lewis, Et al (2015) mainly gives an example of the challenges facing young adolescent females to explain how

ADOLESCENCE DEVELOPMENT 5 difficult it concerns identity development. Adolescent girls have to cope with different aspects of society in their transition to adolescence including social changes, cultural changes, and developmental changes (MacPherson, Kerr, & Stirling, 2016). As a result, this complex transition significantly alters their understanding of childhood identity, which in turn puts them into a state of confusion, and in extreme cases, some of them lose their sense of self and gain self-esteem related problems like depression and suicide (Nelson, Jarcho & Guyer, 2016). Girls can explore their various interests in different contexts of life along with their male counterparts during childhood. However, as they transition to adolescence, issues of gender stereotypes creep in, and both girls and boys feel pressured to follow to social expectations Brewster, (Billy & Grady, 1993). For instance, in a sports situation, both genders are inclined to modify and reconstruct their identity to be more compatible with society’s gender-pertinent expectations. More so, transitioning from childhood to adolescence pushes for more independence and originality, and this leads to family conflicts and disputes (Drake, Sladek &Doane, 2016). For example, adolescence ushers in differences over responsibilities and freedom between parents and their children. Also, several variations and conflicts emerge among siblings, especially over dominance and responsibilities. Family conflicts during adolescence are a social issue because it affects almost all families in society if not all (Drake, Sladek &Doane, 2016). Also, the consequences of family conflicts during adolescence extend beyond the control of an individual, and it is the foundation of conflicting opinions drawn from differences in perception of what is wrong and right. Family conflicts are not comprehensively bad because they shape the cognitive development process of the involved adolescents. Through family conflicts, adolescents in the family learn how to resolve human differences, which are inevitable in life (Drake, Sladek &Doane, 2016). These conflicts also help adolescent’s process information more

ADOLESCENCE DEVELOPMENT 6 effectively by focusing on aspects of cognitive development such as language learning and perceptual skull. Negative social issues lead to significant psychological problems such as depression, unhealthy risk behaviors such as drug and substance abuse and engagement in unprotected sex, among others. According to Williams, Holmbeck & Greenley (2002), the prevalence of major psychological issues, especially depression and suicidal thoughts progresses over the teenage years. However, Lewis et al, 2014) confirms that there are significant differences between negative psychological issues experienced by male and females across lifespan developmental stages stating that research findings have been consistent with over thirty studies reporting that adolescent females are more likely to be depressed than males (Williams, Holmbeck & Greenley, 2002). Females are more vulnerable to depression and other opposing effects of social changes during adolescence due to both biological and psychological factors associated with puberty. Natural elements like hormonal imbalances in female enhance depressive episodes in girls than in boys. The level of estrogen and testosterone increased in females and combined with their role in sexual maturity, and they lower the level of stress reaction (Nelson, Jarcho & Guyer, 2016). There are a variety of biological processes that drive this stage of lifespan development including changing sexual characteristics. Although the pattern of changes in sexual characteristics in adolescents is regular, their timing varies depending on genetic composition along well as other factors (Nelson, Jarcho & Guyer, 2016). Sexual maturity takes place in adolescence, and some complex interactions among developmental organs like the brain, sexual hormones, and pituitary glands among others take place.

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ADOLESCENCE DEVELOPMENT 7 References Baltes, P. B. (1987). Theoretical propositions of life-span developmental psychology: On the dynamics between growth and decline. Developmental psychology , 23 (5), 611. Brewster, K. L., Billy, J. O., & Grady, W. R. (1993). Social context and adolescent behavior: The impact of community on the transition to sexual activity. Social forces , 71 (3), 713- 740. Drake, E. C., Sladek, M. R., &Doane, L. D. (2016). Daily cortisol activity, loneliness, and coping efficacy in late adolescence: A longitudinal study of the transition to college. International Journal of Behavioral Development , 40 (4), 334-345. Kail, R. V., & Cavanaugh, J. C. (2018). Human development: A life-span view . Cengage Learning. Lewis, A. J., Kremer, P., Douglas, K., Toumborou, J. W., Hameed, M. A., Patton, G. C., & Williams, J. (2015). Gender differences in adolescent depression: differential female susceptibility to stressors affecting family functioning. Australian Journal of Psychology , 67 (3), 131-139. MacPherson, E., Kerr, G., &Stirling, A. (2016). The influence of peer groups in organized sport on female adolescents' identity development. Psychology of Sport and Exercise , 23 , 73- 81. Nelson, E. E., Jarcho, J. M., &Guyer, A. E. (2016). Social re-orientation and brain development: An expanded and updated view. Developmental cognitive neuroscience , 17 , 118-127. Newman, B. M., & Newman, P. R. (2017). Development through life: A psychosocial approach . Cengage Learning.

ADOLESCENCE DEVELOPMENT 8 Simmons, R. G. (2017). Moving into adolescence: The impact of pubertal change and school context . Routledge. Williams, P. G., Holmbeck, G. N., & Greenley, R. N. (2002). Adolescent health psychology. Journal of consulting and clinical psychology , 70 (3), 828.

Adolescent Development finished

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