Adolescent Cognitive Analysis

In “Denaturalizing Adolescence,” Nancy Lesko uses rhetorical and historical readings to examine the truth about adolescents by challenging the universal characterizations that they are “coming of age.” When describing adolescence, Lesko states: “The knowledge about adolescents is

The control adolescents express over the choices they make, like the rise and fall of the tide, is fluid and dependant on multiple factors. These factors--biography, biology and current situation--are essential to the adolescent decision-making process as they manage to influence, but not control, the choices we make.

Adolescence is defined as the transition between childhood and adulthood. Many changes happen at this stage. Adolescence involves things such as puberty, greater independence, and a time when someone begins to construct their identity. Identity means their life value and goals including a secure sense of who they are in terms of sexual, vocational, and moral ethics. In the next few paragraphs I will be discussing my Virtual Child, Maeve as she went through adolescence (ages 11- 16). I am going to delve into the different changes I saw in her and how they relate to theories proposed by Piaget, Erikson, Marcia, and Gardner. Each

The article “Inside the Teenage Brain” by Marty Wolner states that recently, brain researchers have been able to do a great quantity of detailed studies on the human brain. Despite previous thoughts about the teenage brain, development of the brain through the teenage years is very dynamic. The teenage brain is still learning how to process certain information properly in the thinking part of the brain, so often teens may not process all the information necessary to make responsible decisions. Nevertheless, the teenage years can be very stressful for both parents and for teens. Getting through the teenage years can be difficult, but with the right amount of healthy communication, discipline and support the road ahead won’t be so rough. At this

In this paper I plan to discuss the developmental stages of adolescence. Adolescents are also referred to as "teenagers" or "young adults." Adolescence begins after the childhood stage and ends right before adulthood. The years of adolescence range from 12 years old to 21 years old. The years of adolescence can be quite a roller coaster ride. Young people in this stage encounter a great deal of changes in their life as they prepare for adulthood. I will discuss emotional, intellectual, physiological, and social domains of development and how it relates to adolescents. I will also discuss some helpful tips for teachers to aide in communicating effectively to adolescents and understanding their

Compared to concrete thinking in childhood, adolescents’ thinking becomes much more abstract. This enables them to partake in self-conception; differentiating between who they are and who they may become in the future (Arnett, 2013). This developmental milestone is presented in The Breakfast Club when the five teens are sitting on the floor, discussing their insecurities. Andrew asks the group, with a horrified expression, if they are going to be like their parents. Claire answers with certainty that she will not (Hughes, et al., 1985). As they imagine their future selves like their parents, they are conceptualizing their feared selves (Arnett, 2013). Andrew also speaks of the false self he presents to make his father proud. This is shown as he admits that the physical pain and humiliation he caused a peer was not something he wanted to do, though he knew it was an action for which his father would praise him (Hughes et al., 1985). According to Arnett (2013), it is during the period of adolescence that teenagers recognize the false selves they present and that their false selves are contrary to their actual feelings and thoughts.

First of all, with the use of plot and character as dramatic elements, MacLeod is able to depict the main characteristics of the nature of adolescence, mainly the search for identity and the quest for independence. Among the scientific community, adolescence is believed to be the most crucial period in human development. It is a period of “rapid biological, social and psychological change” (Soto, et al. 330). There are the transformations that define puberty, there are changes in the relationships and attitudes towards adults and peers, and many teenagers struggle to form a coherent identity (331). In the process of discovering their identities, most adolescents become self-centered. Having not yet

a. At this stage of development, adolescents’ intellectual abilities have developed to include abstract thoughts and ideas. They have a higher level of cognitive function that can go beyond the concrete information to more complex concepts.

The article “The Teen Brain: It’s Just Not Grown Up Yet” by Richard Knox persuades parents and children that a teenager’s brain is not fully developed by using ethos, logos, and figurative language. Knox’s use of ethos contributes to Francis Jensen’s claim that teens do not have fully developed brains by showing that Jensen is credible enough to speak about it. For example, Jensen states that she often thought “like all parents of teenagers, ‘What were they thinking?’” (Knox 1). This is an example of ethos because Knox shows that Jensen is a credible parent, because she wonders the same thing as any other normal parent out there.

The teenage brain is in a very important developmental stage. Every teenager treats their brain differently. Some teens use it while playing sports or doing other physical activities. I use mine for creativity by watching and studying tutorials about 3D and playing video games with my friends. Teenagers act differently than adults. They are more self-conscious and more emotional. The prefrontal cortex is responsible for this because it's a brain region that's not fully developed yet. Teens are also high-risk takers and most of it are influenced by peer pressure. "So research has shown that the adolescent brain undergoes really profound development, and this has implications for education, for rehabilitation, and intervention' (Blakemore). My

Cognitive development in this stage of adolescence centers on the experiences of the adolescent and how they are processed

This group of teenagers were clearly obsessed with themselves and constantly worried about other’s views towards them. The group consisted of four boys and four girls who were obviously interested in each other romantically and sexually. The girls were frequently staring up at me because they immediately noticed that I was looking at them and taking notes. The girls would look up at me and then fix their hair and turn to one of the other girl’s and make a comment. This is an example of egocentrism because the girls thought very highly of themselves and what others think of them. This can be very common amongst teenagers who are anxious, deal with depression or are put into new situation (Berger, 2014, p.430). Watching the group of eight teenagers interact with each other, it was clear that they were trying to figure out who they are in life and what they like in a person. Erikson’s term for the 5th stage of development describes the feeling of not understanding who they are as a teenager. Erikson called this stage the identity versus role confusion stage in which teenagers ask themselves who they are as a person and what they mean in life (Berger, 2014, p. 459). The best part about observing this group of teenagers was when one of the girls spotted me observing them and she decided to comment towards me. I was looking at the group of girls and commented to a friend

For Erikson (1950) adolescence is a period during which individuals seek to avoid dangers of role diffusion and identity confusion by establishing a sense of personal identity. Individuals have to find answers for two major questions “who am I?” and “what is my place in society?” Identity is a “conscious sense of individual uniqueness” and an “unconscious striving for a continuity of experience” (Erikson, 1968, p. 208).

During adolescence, the frontal cortex of the brain rapidly grows. As a result, teens develop self-consciousness and lack the ability to read others emotions correctly. The increase in self-consciousness results in Adolescent Egocentrism. Adolescent Egocentrism prevents teens from understanding how others realistically view them versus how adolescents think that others view them. Adolescent Egocentrism involves the imaginary audience as well as the personal fable.

During adolescence is also when Piaget says the idea of egocentrism remerges. This is related to body image problems, imaginary audience and personal fable. A personal fable is when an adolescent believes that their problems are unique and imaginary audience is when adolescents believe everyone is talking about them (McGraw-Hill Education, 2015) . When looking at my life knowing about these ideas I realized just how much I experienced imaginary audience and personal fable. I remember going through an emo phase, which is a phase defined by rebellion and a certain “Goth”, aesthetic in which I thought that “no one understood me”, which I am