16.7: Chapter 7
- Page ID
- 310038
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00:02 We all know teenagers like to think of themselves as unique.
00:06 The first time I saw a teenager's brain on
00:08 the console at the scanner it was just,
00:10 like that's what makes you different from
00:11 any other human on the planet.
00:15 That's you.
00:17 My name is Jenn Pfeifer and
00:18 I'm a professor of psychology at the University of Oregon.
00:22 I study adolescent development.
00:24 It feels like pretty much everything changes in adolescence,
00:27 from your new biology to your social world.
00:30 I study how these changes are intertwined with each other
00:33 and how they affect your mental health, well-being, and risk behavior.
00:39 There are a lot of myths and misunderstandings
00:41 about adolescence that I'm trying to change.
00:44 One misunderstanding is about when adolescence happens
00:47 or who is an adolescent.
00:49 Most people probably imagine
00:51 a rowdy bunch of 16-year-old boys who skip class stuffed into a car,
00:57 and are speeding down the road to get lunch.
00:59 Or maybe a pimply 13-year-old
01:01 whose body is reshaping itself before their own eyes
01:05 in embarrassing and confusing ways.
01:08 But the truth is adolescence is a much longer and more complex period of life.
01:12 It has a biological beginning with puberty, which can start as early as nine or ten years of age.
01:18 And a social end with the assumption of adult roles
01:21 and responsibilities, typically sometime in your 20s.
01:24 I often say that means adolescence doesn't have a capital "A".
01:28 It's not just one or two big things that happen or a couple of problems
01:32 get solved, but a long series of changes with different timing and
01:36 patterns in your body, brain, behavior, and relationships.
01:42 Since teenagers can drive adults up the wall at times it's important to
01:46 reconsider how we interpret their behavior.
01:49 A really damaging myth about adolescence is that
01:52 these changes in their bodies and brains make them do crazy things.
01:57 We often hear the media say teens have an immature prefrontal cortex
02:01 or it's underdeveloped or even broken or missing.
02:06 On the other hand, they also say their systems for processing emotions and rewards
02:12 are hyperresponsive, in overdrive, left unchecked because
02:16 the prefrontal cortex isn't ready to take control yet.
02:22 There are two really important things to know about this myth.
02:26 One, it's just not that simple.
02:28 You can also use your prefrontal cortex to plan how to achieve any kind of goal
02:33 including ones adults might call risky.
02:36 But two, and this is maybe the surprising part, It's actually really
02:40 important for adolescents to take risks.
02:44 A risk is just a decision where the outcome is unknown
02:47 and trying things we don't know the answer to is how we learn.
02:53 Adolescence is this magical time where biology and your social environment
02:58 both work together to create opportunities to take risks.
03:02 So you learn more, by exploring and by trying out these unknowns.
03:07 Do I like playing soccer? Am I any good at it?
03:11 I like being on the team more than I thought I would.
03:13 Does that guy or girl like me?
03:16 Whoa dating someone is more stressful than I thought it would be.
03:20 It's a good time to try new things because as an adolescent you're in between.
03:25 You have more capabilities and more independence, but you've also got a safety-net in your family.
03:31 That highlights a third misconception, that parents don't really matter anymore in adolescence.
03:37 While it's true that peer and romantic relationships become increasingly important,
03:41 parents need to realize they still matter to adolescent well-being,
03:46 a lot.
03:48 The learning and risk-taking adolescence do is fueled by a need for social connection.
03:54 Although it can feel like it, parents aren't being replaced but
03:57 adolescents do need to develop their own relationships and networks of social support outside the family.
04:03 It's just part of growing up.
04:05 So maybe a better way to think about adolescence than as a crazy immature time,
04:10 is as a stage where the brain naturally becomes hungry for new experiences and social connections.
04:16 Teens seek them out and soak them up because that's their job.
04:20 It's how they grow and learn.
04:23 That means the teenage brain isn't flawed, it is perfectly designed
04:27 to help young people grow into the adults they will become.
04:31 If we as parents and as a society can help them do that in safe
04:35 supportive ways they can all reach their fullest potential.
“Debunking Myths about Adolescence” by Jenn Pfeifer is licensed by University of Oregon under CC BY.