Adolescent Development

Question 1

What is adolescence?

Answer 1

• critical period 10-25
• defined by malleability nd plasticity

Question 2

What are the three developmental stages of pubertal development?

Answer 2

Andrenarche (ages 6-8)
- Maturation of HPA axis - and adrenal androgens

Gonadarche (ages 9-11)
- Reactivation of HPG axis
- Rise contributes to breast and genital development

Menarche - the arrival of the first period (in girls)

Question 3

What is andrenarche?

Answer 3

• Adrenal hormones increase in sexual maturation process.
  
  • Associate with pubic and axillary hair growth
  • Occurs before secretion of sex steroids.

Question 4

What is gonadarche?

Answer 4

• Earliest gonadal changes marking beginning of puberty.
  
  • Increased production of oestrogen and testosterone
  • Leads to ovary, breast and teste development
  • Signs = thelarche (initial breast), ovary breast and teste development

Question 5

What is pubertal
status
timing
tempo?

Answer 5

status- how far along in maturation- Tanner stage §

timing- how mature an adolescent is compared to same-sex peers §

tempo- within individual metric of development

Question 6

How can early pubertal timing influence an individual?

Answer 6

accelerated maturation by premature activation of the HPA and HPG axes.

Question 7

Impact of early life experiences on pubertal development:

Answer 7

• Sexual abuse - lowers menarche age
  
  • Internalized symptoms - anxiety declines after menarche
    Physical abuse - rapid temp

Question 8

What are some environmental factors influencing puberty timing?

Answer 8

Parental harshness and father absence - early menarche

Obesity and low birth weight associated with earlier puberty maturation (for girls)

Overweight and obesity associated with later pubertal maturation.

Question 9

how is pubertal development influenced by chemicals?

Answer 9

higher flame retardants in blood by early utero exposure. #

Question 10

what is the link between puberty and stress sensitivity?

Answer 10

• Pubertal hormones alter after response to stress (mostly girls)
  
  • Interaction between cortisol and age, puberty and sex

Question 11

what changes occur in the brain during puberty development?

Answer 11

• Changes in grey and white matter
  Grey matter changes include synaptogenesis and synaptic pruning (formation and disappearance of a synapse)

Myelination increase: increases quality and speed of neuron to neuron communication.

Grey matter throughout rain shrinks in adolescence - sign brain is becoming more specialized

Nerve cells in outer layer of the brain called the cortex get wrapped with myelin, an insulating substance that helps speed signals.

Communication links between distant parts of the brain, called white matter tracts, start to solidify into an adultlike structure.

Cortical thinning:
- Gray matter reduction and increased white matter organization

Increased connectivity of important circuitry and pruning unnecessary synapses

Improves brain function - improved quality of neuronal connections.

Prefrontal cortex:
- Top-down processing, improve connectivity - cortical and subcortical
- Subcortical: basal ganglia, hippocampus and amygdala.

Question 12

What occurs in adolescents through social-emotional development?

Answer 12

• Integrate multiple perspectives
  
  • Integrate experiences across contexts
  • Deepen ability to understand complex and abstract phenomena.

Self identity becomes more integrated, coherent and stable over time.
= positive wellbeing across life course.