The Promise of Adolescence

The Promise of Adolescence
Author: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 493
Release: 2019-07-26
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0309490111

Adolescenceâ€"beginning with the onset of puberty and ending in the mid-20sâ€"is a critical period of development during which key areas of the brain mature and develop. These changes in brain structure, function, and connectivity mark adolescence as a period of opportunity to discover new vistas, to form relationships with peers and adults, and to explore one's developing identity. It is also a period of resilience that can ameliorate childhood setbacks and set the stage for a thriving trajectory over the life course. Because adolescents comprise nearly one-fourth of the entire U.S. population, the nation needs policies and practices that will better leverage these developmental opportunities to harness the promise of adolescenceâ€"rather than focusing myopically on containing its risks. This report examines the neurobiological and socio-behavioral science of adolescent development and outlines how this knowledge can be applied, both to promote adolescent well-being, resilience, and development, and to rectify structural barriers and inequalities in opportunity, enabling all adolescents to flourish.

The Teenage Brain

The Teenage Brain
Author: Frances E. Jensen
Publisher: Harper Collins
Total Pages: 270
Release: 2015-01-06
Genre: Psychology
ISBN: 0062067869

A New York Times Bestseller Renowned neurologist Dr. Frances E. Jensen offers a revolutionary look at the brains of teenagers, dispelling myths and offering practical advice for teens, parents and teachers. Dr. Frances E. Jensen is chair of the department of neurology in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. As a mother, teacher, researcher, clinician, and frequent lecturer to parents and teens, she is in a unique position to explain to readers the workings of the teen brain. In The Teenage Brain, Dr. Jensen brings to readers the astonishing findings that previously remained buried in academic journals. The root myth scientists believed for years was that the adolescent brain was essentially an adult one, only with fewer miles on it. Over the last decade, however, the scientific community has learned that the teen years encompass vitally important stages of brain development. Samples of some of the most recent findings include: Teens are better learners than adults because their brain cells more readily "build" memories. But this heightened adaptability can be hijacked by addiction, and the adolescent brain can become addicted more strongly and for a longer duration than the adult brain. Studies show that girls' brains are a full two years more mature than boys' brains in the mid-teens, possibly explaining differences seen in the classroom and in social behavior. Adolescents may not be as resilient to the effects of drugs as we thought. Recent experimental and human studies show that the occasional use of marijuana, for instance, can cause lingering memory problems even days after smoking, and that long-term use of pot impacts later adulthood IQ. Multi-tasking causes divided attention and has been shown to reduce learning ability in the teenage brain. Multi-tasking also has some addictive qualities, which may result in habitual short attention in teenagers. Emotionally stressful situations may impact the adolescent more than it would affect the adult: stress can have permanent effects on mental health and can to lead to higher risk of developing neuropsychiatric disorders such as depression. Dr. Jensen gathers what we’ve discovered about adolescent brain function, wiring, and capacity and explains the science in the contexts of everyday learning and multitasking, stress and memory, sleep, addiction, and decision-making. In this groundbreaking yet accessible book, these findings also yield practical suggestions that will help adults and teenagers negotiate the mysterious world of adolescent development.

Coping and Self-Concept in Adolescence

Coping and Self-Concept in Adolescence
Author: H.A. Bosma
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 253
Release: 2012-12-06
Genre: Psychology
ISBN: 3642752225

Self-concept and coping behaviour are important aspects of development in adolescence. Despite their developmental significance, however, the two areas have rarely been considered in relation to each other. This book is the first in which the two areas are brought together; it suggests that this interaction can open the way to new possibilities for further research and to new implications for applied work with adolescents. Two separate chapters review research carried out in each of the areas. These are followed by a series of more empirically focussed chapters in which issues such as changes in relationship patterns, difficult school situations, leaving school, use of leisure, anxiety and suicidal behaviour are examined in the context of self-concept and coping. The final chapter seeks to identify some of the central themes emerging from this work and discusses possible research and applied implications.

Inventing Ourselves

Inventing Ourselves
Author: Sarah-Jayne Blakemore
Publisher: PublicAffairs
Total Pages: 234
Release: 2018-05-15
Genre: Psychology
ISBN: 1610397320

A tour through the groundbreaking science behind the enigmatic, but crucial, brain developments of adolescence and how those translate into teenage behavior The brain creates every feeling, emotion, and desire we experience, and stores every one of our memories. And yet, until very recently, scientists believed our brains were fully developed from childhood on. Now, thanks to imaging technology that enables us to look inside the living human brain at all ages, we know that this isn't so. Professor Sarah-Jayne Blakemore, one of the world's leading researchers into adolescent neurology, explains precisely what is going on in the complex and fascinating brains of teenagers -- namely that the brain goes on developing and changing right through adolescence--with profound implications for the adults these young people will become. Drawing from cutting-edge research, including her own, Blakemore shows: How an adolescent brain differs from those of children and adults Why problem-free kids can turn into challenging teens What drives the excessive risk-taking and all-consuming relationships common among teenagers And why many mental illnesses -- depression, addiction, schizophrenia -- present during these formative years Blakemore's discoveries have transformed our understanding of the teenage mind, with consequences for law, education policy and practice, and, most of all, parents.

Adolescence

Adolescence
Author: C. M. Fleming
Publisher: Psychology Press
Total Pages: 280
Release: 1998
Genre: Family & Relationships
ISBN: 9780415176583

Young people are educable. Young people are worth educating. Upon their wise handling depend the issues of ultimate harmonyor conflict in the home, in workshop or factory, and among thenations. Many current methods of treatment find, however, theirjustification only in the somewhat mythical descriptions of pastcenturies. For most of these there is little support in the morecareful studies of recent years.

Brainstorm

Brainstorm
Author: Daniel J. Siegel, MD
Publisher: Penguin
Total Pages: 338
Release: 2014-01-07
Genre: Family & Relationships
ISBN: 110163152X

In this New York Times–bestselling book, Dr. Daniel Siegel shows parents how to turn one of the most challenging developmental periods in their children’s lives into one of the most rewarding. Between the ages of twelve and twenty-four, the brain changes in important and, at times, challenging ways. In Brainstorm, Dr. Daniel Siegel busts a number of commonly held myths about adolescence—for example, that it is merely a stage of “immaturity” filled with often “crazy” behavior. According to Siegel, during adolescence we learn vital skills, such as how to leave home and enter the larger world, connect deeply with others, and safely experiment and take risks. Drawing on important new research in the field of interpersonal neurobiology, Siegel explores exciting ways in which understanding how the brain functions can improve the lives of adolescents, making their relationships more fulfilling and less lonely and distressing on both sides of the generational divide.

Primary Love

Primary Love
Author: Randall S. Klein
Publisher: University Press of America
Total Pages: 165
Release: 2010-06-05
Genre: Psychology
ISBN: 0761851127

In Primary Love, Dr. Klein describes love and intimacy as they evolve in the context of family relations from birth to maturity in adulthood. Once the original attachment and the loving, intimate bond between a mother and her infant-child are established, primary love is founded and secured. Every relationship of love and intimacy formed thereafter has - as its foundation, nature, and design - the original, pristine, loving relationship encountered in the very earliest period of life. When two adults form a mature, intimate relationship, it is the unconscious wish of both partners to recapture and claim the bliss and the ecstasy of primary love, nestled securely in a mother's loving and ministering arms. Dr. Klein's view of love and intimacy is that which is found in the ideal marriage and family, fully acknowledging that the pure and 'perfect' marriage and family does not exist. Yet, the 'perfectly' described nature of marriage and the family serves as an ideal toward which to strive, for the ideal provides the ultimate of pleasure and reward in the human encounter of love.

Principles of Classroom Learning and Perception

Principles of Classroom Learning and Perception
Author: Richard J. Mueller
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 338
Release: 2017-09-13
Genre: Psychology
ISBN: 1351785087

Originally published in 1974, this introductory text has been designed specifically for teachers in training, and it presents the basic psychological principles governing learning, perception, motivation and the retention of knowledge at the time. The text is carefully tailored for would-be teachers in its clear and informal style, and in its selective aspects of psychology which the teacher can use to advantage in his efforts to assist the child. The book has an eclectic approach to psychological theory, drawing upon the insights of behaviourism, perceptualism and the Gestalt school, as well as the developmental theories of Jean Piaget. The author discusses in some detail theories concerning the nature of intelligence, and the relationship between creativity and intelligence; and he investigates the dynamics of social adjustment, introducing the part that may be played by meditation in helping to solve some of the problems of emotional stress within the learning situation. In his consideration of the management of learning, the author lays much emphasis upon the importance of individual cognitive styles, individualizing instruction and independent learning. In one chapter Dr Mueller is concerned with factors in the measurement of personality and of performance in the classroom, and he reflects upon the specific problem of objectivity in such assessment. Finally, some consideration is given to the problems and characteristics of the socially disadvantaged child and to the role of the teacher in helping to solve some of the learning problems of these children.