Adolescent development is such a familiar terminology for human development. Majority of the people are aware of this concept or have at least touched based on it. People also know adolescent development as people going through puberty, identity crisis, etc. Even though this idea and concept of adolescent development are very common today, surprisingly, the concept and the idea of adolescent development were neither heavily researched nor valued. This is because “prehistoric and ancient civilizations did not think that individuals developed through a number of stages” (Steffof, 1990, p. 15). Long time ago, people believed if you were a small person, then you were known as a child; if you were a bigger person, then you were known as an adult. …show more content…
17). He was responsible for “[planting] the seed of the modern concept of adolescence” (Steffof, 1990, p. 17). He was the founder of adolescent development as he was the first person to recognize and research the “physical changes of puberty”, along with adolescents’ “sexual urges, [their] confusion, the conflict[s they] felt between childish and adult desires and behaviors, and [their] emotional turmoil” (Steffof, 1990, p. 17). Jean-Jacques Rousseau was great at recognizing the very obvious aspect of adolescent development: the physical changes. One of Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s works is Emile, or On Education. This book is a “fictional account of the upbringing of a boy named Emile” (Steffof, 1990, p. 17). Through this fictional account, Jean-Jacques Rousseau describes and illustrates adolescents and their development. Rousseau believed adolescent development to be “a second birth” because this is when a “child is born into the world of independent life with his or her own values and virtues” (Steffof, 1990, p. 17). He does a good job of explaining this and even giving a metaphor. He explained how adolescent development is “like a ship”; “with the approach of puberty, the ship left the serene waters of childhood and entered a region of tempests and powerful waves” (Steffof, 1990, p. …show more content…
The adolescent feels the urgency of new sexual feelings and powers, but society’s customs and rules inhibit those urges or work to prevent the adolescent from acting upon them” (Steffof, 1990, p. 20). This means there are certain things adolescents want to do. However, because they are afraid of how the society would react if they do those things, they are prevented from what they really want to express. Hall explains this further as he states how “the adolescent is torn between the desire to remain in the protected, dependent, comforting world of childhood and the even stronger desire to enter the independent but sometimes frightening world of adulthood” (Steffof, 1990, p. 20). The most significant aspect of Hall’s research on adolescent development is he “demonstrated that adolescents are different from both children and adults not simply in their level of physical development and their age but in the way they feel and think” (Steffof, 1990, p. 21). Hall was the first person to actually recognize and realize adolescents are in different in that they think completely differently compared to both children and adult. This idea of cognitive thinking and emotional state for adolescent development is very significant because this idea is the core and the main aspect of what it means to be an adolescent and what adolescents go
Jean Jacques Rousseau in On Education writes about how to properly raise and educate a child. Rousseau's opinion is based on his own upbringing and lack of formal education at a young age. Rousseau depicts humanity as naturally good and becomes evil because humans tamper with nature, their greatest deficiency, but also possess the ability to transform into self-reliant individuals. Because of the context of the time, it can be seen that Rousseau was influenced by the idea of self-preservation, individual freedom, and the Enlightenment, which concerned the operation of reason, and the idea of human progress. Rousseau was unaware of psychology and the study of human development. This paper will argue that Rousseau theorizes that humanity is naturally good by birth, but can become evil through tampering and interfering with nature.
While being a teenager, physical and mental development occur. During this time of mental development, the introduction of new emotions, habits, problems
Steinberg, Laurence & Morris, Amanda Sheffield. “Adolescent Development.” Annual Review of Psychology, (Annual 2001): 83-110. [E Journal]
According to Steinberg (2014) adolescents is a time of growing up, of moving from the immaturity of childhood into the maturity of adulthood, of preparation for the future. It is a period of transitions: biological, psychological, and social. Adolescence can begin as early as ten years of age and not end until the adolescent is in their early twenties. It is important to note that adolescent development occurs at different times for each individual. Therefore, students in the same grade that are around the same age may be going through different developmental stages of adolescents. The purpose of this analysis paper is to discuss the different stages of adolescent development, how they affect the maturity of the students and to determine
Adolescence is a transition which has no fixed time limits. However, the changes that occur at this time are so significant that it is useful to talk about adolescence as a distinct period of human life cycle. This period ranges from biological changes to changes in behavior and social status, thus making it difficult to specify its limits exactly (Damon, 2008). Adolescence begins with puberty, i.e. a series of physiological changes that lead to full development of the sexual organs and the ability to breed and sex. The time interval that elapses begins at 11 to 12 years and extends to 18 to 20. However we cannot associate to a 13 with one 18 years. Let us talk about early adolescence between 11 to 14 years, which coincides with puberty, and after a second period of youth, or late adolescence between 15-20 years. Its extension to adulthood depends on social, cultural, environmental as well as personal adaptation.
Adolescence is transition between childhood and adulthood (10-20 years old). Adolescent experiences numerous changes in brain structure, physical growth, cognition, emotional and social development. Numerous academic disciplines such as medicine, psychology and sociology, etc. researched and proposed theories in attempt to understand these developments and their impact on adolescents. Any theory provides representative assessment of a person’s
A famous Swiss educator, Rousseau was considered to raise the Copernican Revolution after he came up with a theory “children-centered”. In his famous book Emile, he severely criticized rigid and inflexible traditional education which seriously distorted and suppressed the natural world of children. He called for “regard children as children” and asked people to teach children according to children’s physical and mental development rule. (Liu, 2014)
Adolescence is a period of physical and psychological development from the onset of puberty to maturity. The adolescent is no longer a child, but they haven’t yet reached adulthood. Adolescence is considered people between the ages of 13 and 21. Puberty is the physical maturing that makes an individual capable of sexual reproduction. Puberty is important to adolescence because when a child hits puberty, that’s when the child is becoming an adolescent. Puberty is a big part of an adolescent’s life.
Middle childhood, is a very exciting time for young children from the ages of seven to twelve years old. It’s known as the school years and new social and cognitive traits are being learned at home and at school. Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalytic theory found this to be the latentcy period in which no much happens. He described this because children at this age sexual and aggressive urges are repressed ("Stages of Growth Development," 1898-1987). This paper will also discuss the changes from middle childhood to adolescence, the affects of parents and peers and the affects they have on developing children.
Throughout our life, it can be marked by developmental changes in every domain of life: our physical, cognitive, social, personalities, and morals. Due to some important researchers such as Erickson, Freud, Piaget we are able to understand the development of each of these domains. Each stage of it’s life has it’s own difficulties and events that can determine a person’s life (Mogler, 2008). During the stages of adolescence, they are very vulnerable to a lot going on in their life such as fitting in, peers, family, school, activities, and society, and not to forget the ups and downs of puberty. Adolescence can be viewed as a huge part of many children’s lives where in this part of their life they try to find teenagers experience physical, cognitive,
In example, according to the Euro-Western view, adolescence is characterised by the interaction between the individual’s biological development and the demands requested by the industrial and post-industrial societies. Although adolescence is globally referred to as the period in life that groups individuals from 12 to 18 years, each individual’s development varies within different countries and cultures. According to the Euro-Western world, adolescence is a time in life that is characterised by experimentation, fun as well as personal growth that will later lead the individual to become a full adult. However, not every young individual experiences this positive and fun side of this life stage. In fact, adolescence is characterised by the hormonal changes that occur during puberty, which are argued to influence adolescents’ behaviour. Hall (cited in Drewery and Claiborne, 2010) argued that due to the effects caused by puberty, young individuals often experience tension, conflicts with their parents and peers, as well as critical mood changes. In line with Hall, Freud (cited in Drewery and Claiborne, 2010) argues that adolescence is a life stage in which it is hard to maintain a steady equilibrium. For these reasons, adolescence can still be considered a “problematic” stage in life, yet it is not necessary true that these conflicts are triggered by biological changes (Drewery and Claiborne,
Transition and change are some of the most difficult obstacles for people to overcome. It is no surprise that adolescence, defined as the transition from childhood to adulthood, is full of obstacles (Feldman, 2012). During this time period, adolescents are neither adults nor children; they do not appear to belong in any stable group. However uncomfortable this may seem, it is also a fitting definition. For during the adolescent stage, adolescents face puberty, sexual curiosity, self-esteem issues, and doubts about their future (Feldman, 2012). Psychoanalyst Erik Erikson aptly argued that adolescents pass through the identity-versus-identity-confusion stage in which teenagers search for defining and unique characteristics about themselves (Feldman, 2012). When a teenager struggles with this stage, a crisis emerges in which they are unable to find an appropriate role in life, often acting out or pursuing dangerous behaviors (Feldman, 2012).
Successful resolution of this psychosocial stage of development is imperative in order to acquire an enduring incorporated sense of self and to progress to the next stage of development. Society and one’s culture also contributes enormously to the commitment or prevention of dealing with the challenges faced during adolescence. Regardless of what challenges are faced during this stage of development, overcoming it is a fundamental necessity in order to progress into a strong-willed and stable individual in
Indeed, adolescent may be defined as the period within the life span when most of a person’s biological, cognitive, psychological and social characteristics are changing from what is typically considered child-like to what is considered adult-like (Learner and Spainer, 1980). This period is a dramatic challenge for any adolescent, which requires adjustment to change one’s own self, in the family, and in the peer group. Contemporary society presents adolescents with institutional changes as well. Among young adolescents, school setting is changed; involving a transition from elementary school to either junior high school or middle school; and late adolescence is accompanied by transition from high school to the worlds of work, University or childrearing. An adolescent experiences it all ranging from excitement and of anxiety, happiness and troubles, discovery and bewilderment, and breaks with the past and yet links with the future (Eya,
Adolescence is the bridge between childhood and adulthood. It is the place in development for a transition. In this time period, adolescent’s social life and relationships develop. Social development occurs throughout a person’s whole lifetime. Social development in adolescence marks the beginning of independence, selective interactions, and conformity. This the time where family relationships can be put to the test as well as seeking independence and adult acknowledgment from parents. Due to the development of the brain in regards to plasticity, adolescences are discovering and trying out new things. They are also viewed as risk takers. Social development in adolescence is important because any decision can lead to future consequences. I decided