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The Facts about Adolescence Sabrina Savage Chamberlain University Lifespan Development PSYC290 Professor Clark November 26, 2023

The Facts about Adolescence It’s something we all experience, that weird transition from early childhood into adulthood. We can all remember times that we felt out of control, with multiple changes daily on who we are and who we wanted to be. But why is that? Our hormones, emotions, personalities, chemistry change rapidly during adolescence. We can start a year one person and end that same year feeling like someone else entirely. So, let’s look at why your child going through adolescence could seem more moody than normal. Contrary to popular belief, hormones, and lack of cognitive thinking skills isn’t the leading cause of teenage angst. Research has been done throughout the years that has shown that it is more likely due to rapid brain growth, white and grey matter, changes in their brain activity and their brain and all the cells inside are developing at different rates in different regions. Areas that deal with emotional responses or the hypothalamus and amygdala. These areas of the brain are maturing sooner than the frontal lobes such as the prefrontal cortex, which is the part of the brain that gives them impulse control, self- regulation, and judgment, just to name a few. Figure: 1 Figure: 2

“ The structure of the brain changes across late childhood and adolescence: gray matter volume decreases and white matter volume increases. Gray matter changes occur within networks that may be targets for neurodegenerative, developmental, and psychiatric disorders. ” (Bray, 2015). Our children’s brains are ever evolving. Add this to their already growing and changing bodies, teens need more sleep rest and time to recuperate from the effects of puberty and adolescence. Figure: 3 So, what is white and grey matter, and what does it mean for children? Grey matter's primary function is to receive information and help regulate the outgoing information. It is made up of cell bodies of neurons. Grey matter is control of memory, movement and emotions. Research suggests that higher grey matter content in individuals would produce a higher IQ. While white matter, which is majorly made of axons, aides to transmit signals to other regions and sections of the brain, body, and spinal cord. This would mean that white matter is your child’s ability to learn, stay balanced while being active, and their comprehension skills.

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Now that we have an understanding of why our children may be more moody than normal, how do we help them through this process the best way possible? We want nothing more than for our children to succeed, and keeping an open line of communication can be the easiest way to lay a foundation down. Creating safe environments to express their wants and needs, and the ability to comfortably explore the possibilities of themselves. Allowing children to learn to utilize their own resources will in turn lead to higher self-esteem. Another great way is to expose your children ti different cultural and economic backgrounds and perspectives. Volunteering can help give them a sense of purpose and responsibility while growing their self-confidence. “ Autonomy and agency, therefore, can be enhanced by making contributions and seeing the impact on other people and groups. ” (Fulignia, 2019). It would seem there are many ways to help our children through adolescence. Most, if not all of the ways are by giving patience, grace, and understanding. We need to hold compassion for our children, while understanding that their bodies and brains are going through tremendous amounts of change every day.

References Bray, S., Krongold, M., Cooper, C., & Lebel, C. (2015). Synergistic Effects of Age on Patterns of White and Gray Matter Volume across Childhood and Adolescence. eNeuro , 2 (4), ENEURO.0003-15.2015. https://doi.org/10.1523/ENEURO.0003-15.2015 Fuligni A. J. (2019). The Need to Contribute During Adolescence. Perspectives on psychological science : a journal of the Association for Psychological Science , 14 (3), 331–343. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691618805437 Figure: 1 https://kids.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/frym.2020.00075 Figure: 2. https://www.brainfacts.org/thinking-sensing-and-behaving/childhood-and- adolescence/2015/hormones-and-the-adolescent-brain-120915 Figure: 3 https://www.eneuro.org/content/2/4/ENEURO.0003-15.2015

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