Cognitive Development in Adolescence

1. Cognitive Development in Adolescence Lecture 16 C6035 Human Development

2. Adolescent Cognition • Piaget’s Theory: Adolescent was in formal operational stage of cognition where thought is more abstract & adolescents are no longer limited to actual, concrete experiences as anchors for thought • They can now conjure up make-believe situations & events that are hypothetical possibilities & then try to reason logically about them • In this stage: adolescent has ability to develop hypotheses, or best guesses to solve problems as in algebraic equation • They systematically deduce, or conclude best path to follow in solving equation

4. Challenge to Piaget’s formal Operational Stage • There is much more individual variation than what he envisioned • Indeed, it is estimated than only 1 out of 3 young adolescents is a formal operational thinker, and many American adults never become such thinkers

5. Adolescent Egocentrism • Heightened self-consciousness of adolescents which is reflected in their belief that others are as interested in them as they are & in their sense of personal uniqueness David Elkind proposes two types of social thinking: • imaginary audience: a belief that they are ‘on stage’ and that their every act is being viewed by an imaginary audience • personal fable: sense of uniqueness making them feel that no one can understand them

6. Information Processing in Adolescents • Ability to process information improves in areas of memory, decision making critical thinking & self-regulatory learning • Robert Sternberg found that solving problems, such as analogies, requires individuals to make continued comparisons between newly encoded information & previously encoded information • Adolescents probably have more storage space in short-term memory

7. Adolescent Cognitive Capacities Adolescents have: • Increased speed, automaticity & capacity of information processing • More breadth of content knowledge, • Increased ability to construct new combinations of knowledge • Greater range for applying or obtaining knowledge • Capacity to set goals for extending knowledge • Awareness of their emotional makeup to: periodically monitor their progress, fine-tune their strategies, evaluate obstacles & make adaptations

8. Values • Adolescents carry with them a set of values that influences their thoughts, feelings& actions • Over past two decades, they have shown an increased concern for personal well-being & decreased concern for well-being of others & demonstrate an increasing need for self-fulfillment & self-expression • Some signs indicate that today’s students are shifting toward stronger interest in welfare of society as there has been increase in percentage of freshmen who said that they were strongly interested in participating in community action programs

9. Moral Education • The Hidden Curriculum • John Dewey recognized that schools provide moral education through a ‘hidden curriculum’ which is conveyed by moral atmosphere that is a part of every school • Teachers serve as models of ethical or unethical behavior • Through its rules & regulations, school administration infuses school with a value system

10. Types of Moral Education • Character Education: direct approach involves teaching students basic moral literacy to prevent them from engaging in immoral behavior • Values clarification: helping people clarify what their lives are for & what is worth working for & where students are encouraged to define their own values & understand values of others - It differs from character education in that it does not tell students what their values should be

12. Religion • Many children & adolescents show an interest in religion • Religious institutions, created by adults, are designed to introduce certain beliefs & ensure that children will carry on religious tradition • Religious issues are important to adolescents • 95% of 13-18 year-olds said they believe in God • Almost three-fourths reported they pray

13. Developmental Changes • Adolescence may be an especially important juncture for religious development because identity development becomes a central focus in their lives • Closely related to Piaget’s theory of cognition is a developmental theory providing a theoretical backdrop for understanding religious development in children & adolescents

14. Piaget’s theory of cognition applied to Religious Belief • In preoperational intuitive religious thought children’s religious thoughts were unsystematic & fragmented & they do not understand material in religious stories • In concrete operational thought children focus on particular details of pictures & stories of religion • In formal operational thought adolescents reveal a more abstract, hypothetical religious understanding

15. Religiousness and Sexuality • The degree of adolescents’ participation in religious organizations may be more important than religious affiliation as a determinant of premarital sexual attitudes & behavior • Adolescents who attend religious services frequently may hear messages about abstaining from sex • In one study, adolescents who attended church frequently & valued religion in their lives were less experienced sexually & had less permissive attitudes toward premarital sex

16. Fowler’s Developmental Theory • James Fowler proposed a theory of religious development in stages-focuses on motivation to discover meaning in life: • Stage 1. Intuitive-projective faith (early childhood) infants learn to trust their caregiver & invent own intuitive images of good & evil • Stage 2. Mythical-literal faith (middle and late childhood) children begin to reason in more logical-but not abstract-way • Stage 3. Synthetic-conventional faith (between childhood and adolescence) Adolescents develop formal operational thought & integrate what they have learned about religion into coherent belief system

17. Fowler’s Developmental Theory • Stage 4. Individuating-reflexive faith (between adolescence and adulthood) where individuals are capable of taking full responsibility for their religious beliefs • Stage 5. Conjunctive faith (middle adulthood). Fowler says that only a few adults move on to this stage, which involves being more open to paradox & opposing viewpoints • Stage 6. Universalizing faith (middle or late adulthood) involves transcending specific belief systems to achieve a sense of oneness with all being

19. Schools for Adolescents Controversy Surrounding Secondary Schools • This century has seen schools playing prominent role in lives of adolescents • Laws excluding teens from work & mandating attendance at school were passed by virtually every state • Some experts believe that junior & senior high schools actually contribute to alienation & delinquency & interfere with transition to adulthood • A push for back-to-basics where students are being taught fundamental skills & knowledge needed for workplace

20. Transition to Middle & Junior High School • Junior high schools emerged in 20s & 30s on predication that physical, cognitive & social changes characterizing early adolescence needed a separate institutional approach • Junior high school served as transition to high school which was grades 10–12 • Later - middle schools were adopted which restored 9th grade to high school & brought 6th grade into transitional stage of junior or middle school

21. Transition to Middle & Junior High School • When students make transition from elementary to middle or junior high school - they experience top-dog phenomenon: • Circumstance of moving from top position in elementary school to lowest position in middle/junior high school • These positions are characterized by being oldest, biggest & most powerful versus youngest, smallest & least powerful

22. Effective Middle Schools for Young Adolescents - Joan Lipsitz • School’s ability to adapt all school practices to fit physical, cognitive & social development of its students • Emphasize importance of creating environment positive for adolescents’ social & emotional development • Smaller ‘communities’ or ‘houses’ to lessen impersonal nature of large middle schools • Lower student-to-counselor ratios • Parental & community involvement in school • Curriculum structure flexible in time & content • Program for health and fitness

23. High School Dropouts • Over past 40 years proportion of adolescents who have not finished high school has steadily declined from 60% in 1940 to 5.2% in 1986 • Statistic is skewed by high number of Latino youths who drop out each year - High school graduation rates for Latinos is 63% & for African-Americans it is 76% • Observed differences in dropout rates among ethnic groups were related to family background, especially socioeconomic status, lack of parental support & supervision & low parental expectations

24. Theories of Career Development • Three main theories describe manner in which adolescents make choices about career development: Ginzberg’s Developmental Theory • Children and adolescents go through three career-choice stages: fantasy, tentative, and realistic • Until about age 11, children are in fantasy stage with unrealistic visions of their career • Tentative stage is a transitional and occurs in the early to mid-adolescent years • Realistic stage explores, focuses & then selects a career

25. Theories of Career Development Super’s Self-Concept Theory • Individuals’ self-concepts play central roles in their career choices • During adolescence individuals first construct a career self-concept • Develop ideas about work • Crystallize or narrow their choices • Begin to initiate behavior for some type of career • Begin specific training for a career • In later life - after 35 years of age - begin to consolidate & engage in career enhancement

26. Theories of Career Development Holland’s Personality-Type Theory • An effort should be made to match an individual’s career choice with his or her personality • Theory built upon assumption that everyone is a specific type & will not change nor develop into other types Holland’s six personality types: • Realistic conventional • enterprising intellectual • artistic social

28. Influences on Career Development Increasing Educational Training • ability to partake in advanced academic and vocational training Immediate Environment • urban, rural or suburban • ethnicity and race • living conditions • quality of schooling

29. Influences on Career Development Gender • some career choices are predominantly controlled by males • wide disparity in income levels between male and female in many careers

30. Sociohistorical Context of Adolescent Work • At the turn of 19th century-fewer than 1 out of 20 high-school-age children was in school • Today - more than 9 out of every 10 adolescents receives a high school diploma • National survey of 17,000 high school students- 3 out of 4 reported some job income during average school week with income exceeding $50 per week for 41% males & 30% females • 1940 only 1of 25 10th graders had part-time job • Jobs for Teens: 17% fast-food restaurants, 20% cashiers in retail stores, 10% unskilled laborers 10% clerical assistants

31. Work for Adolescents Benefits to work for Adolescents: • Money management • Time budgets • Pride in accomplishments • Important skills about how to get & keep a job Drawbacks to work: • Give up sports, social affairs with peers & sometimes sleep • Lower grade point averages • Poor school attendance • Less satisfaction with school • Less time with their families • Alcohol and marijuana