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Risk-taking in Adolescence

Risk-taking in Adolescence. Michael Hoerger. Why smart teens “act dumb”. Why smart teens act dumb . “A little knowledge can be dangerous” …an incomplete set of skills can too Complex tasks require multiple skills Gap in developmental milestones: some skills develop before others

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Risk-taking in Adolescence

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  1. Risk-taking in Adolescence Michael Hoerger Why smart teens “act dumb”

  2. Why smart teens act dumb • “A little knowledge can be dangerous” …an incomplete set of skills can too • Complex tasks require multiple skills • Gap in developmental milestones: some skills develop before others • Sometimes problems result from not having all skills at once

  3. Many tasks require multiple skills • Rollerblading: requires ability to move and ability to stop • What happens when people learn to move but have not yet learned to stop? • Other examples: • Playing basketball, eating Halloween candy, cheerleading

  4. Adolescent Milestones • Early adolescence • Increased levels of stimulation and novelty seeking, more risk-taking • Late adolescence to adulthood • Mature frontal lobes (decision-making center), increased planning, reasoning, caution, and error monitoring

  5. Risk-taking & Novelty-seeking • Increases start around age 10-13 • Common across species • Motivates establishment of new territories, development of own family • Increased independence • “Young male syndrome” • Increased number of arrests and murders • More car accidents and reckless driving

  6. Changing levels of dopamine associated with increased novelty seeking and emotionality • More activation in the amygdala (“gut reactions”) than the frontal cortex early in adolescence • Greater difficulty in interpreting emotions, regulating emotions, planning, understanding motives

  7. Frontal Lobe Maturation • Doesn’t occur until age 18-25 • Planning and reasoning • Override “gut reactions” • Increased error-monitoring • When people make a mistake but it’s too late to override the decision, there is an abrupt shift in brain wave activity

  8. Why? • Why do novelty-seeking and risk-taking develop earlier than error-monitoring? • Humans are not perfect • Adolescents is an awkward time • Confront new challenges • Face rejection without caring • Persist despite errors

  9. Michael Hoerger To cite this lecture: • Hoerger, M. (2007, March 14). Risk-Taking in Adolescence. Presented at a PSY 220 lecture at Central Michigan University.

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