In the midst of this time of change the brain is still developing.
Current research states that the brain undergoes two main periods of increased production of gray-matter: the first begins during fetal development and lasts until around 18 months of age and the second occurs during early adolescence.
Gray matter is responsible for the generation of nerve impulses (processing of the brain’s information), while white matter is responsible for the transfer of brain information from one lobe to another and out to the spinal cord. This transmission of nerve impulses is assisted by a fatty layer that wraps around the neuron’s axon called a myelin sheath. Gray matter does not have a myelin sheath, while white matter does. This myelin sheath allows impulses to travel faster and more efficiently but isn’t fully formed (through a process called myelination) until around age twenty-five, with the frontal lobe being the last area of the brain to be myelinated. The incomplete myelination and rapid growth of gray matter that are characteristic of adolescent brains do not allow the same cortical connections that occur in adulthood; thus, adolescent thinking is in a realm of its own.
The frontal lobe houses the area of the brain where we process higher cortical functions like reasoning, problem-solving, short-term memory, planning and executing behavior, language, motor function, social mirroring, judgment, and impulse control. Until the frontal lobe has matured, other parts of the brain (temporal lobe, parietal lobe and the amygdala) are used for language development and decision making. Because of the involvement of other parts of the brain in these functions, adolescents tend to lack impulse control, demonstrate more irrational behaviors, and often make decisions based on their feelings rather than logical thought processing. All of these characteristics affect their ability to learn.
They are dramatic, irrational and scream for seemingly no reason. And they have a deep need for both greater independence and tender loving care. There is a reason this description could be used for either teens or toddlers: after infancy, the brain’s most dramatic growth spurt occurs in adolescence.
“The brain continues to change throughout life, but there are huge leaps in development during adolescence,” said Sara Johnson, an assistant professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health who reviewed the neuroscience in “The Teen Years Explained: A Guide to Healthy Adolescent Development” (Johns Hopkins University, 2009) by Clea McNeely and Jayne Blanchard.
And though it may seem impossible to get inside the head of an adolescent, scientists have probed this teen tangle of neurons. Due to the increase in brain matter, the teen brain becomes more interconnected and gains processing power. Adolescents start to have the computational and decision-making skills of an adult – if given time and access to information, she said. But in the heat of the moment, their decision-making can be overly influenced by emotions, because their brains rely more on the limbic system (the emotional seat of the brain) than the more rational prefrontal cortex, explained said Sheryl Feinstein, author of “Inside the Teenage Brain: Parenting a Work in Progress” (Rowman and Littlefield, 2009). “This duality of adolescent competence can be very confusing for parents,” Johnson said, meaning that sometimes teens do things, like punch a wall or drive too fast, when, if asked, they clearly know better.
“Puberty is the beginning of major changes in the limbic system,” Johnson said, referring to the part of the brain that not only helps regulate heart rate and blood sugar levels, but also is critical to the formation of memories and emotions.
Part of the limbic system, the amygdala is thought to connect sensory information to emotional responses. Its development, along with hormonal changes, may give rise to newly intense experiences of rage, fear, aggression (including toward oneself), excitement and sexual attraction.
Over the course of adolescence, the limbic system comes under greater control of the prefrontal cortex, the area just behind the forehead, which is associated with planning, impulse control and higher order thought. [Top 10 Mysteries of the Mind]
As additional areas of the brain start to help process emotion, older teens gain some equilibrium and have an easier time interpreting others. But until then, they often misread teachers and parents, Feinstein said. “You can be as careful as possible and you still will have tears or anger at times because they will have misunderstood what you have said,” she said.
Abstract reasoning makes it possible to consider yourself from the eyes of another. Teens may use this new skill to ruminate about what others are thinking of them. In particular, peer approval has been shown to be highly rewarding to the teen brain, Johnson said, which may be why teens are more likely to take risks when other teens are around. “Kids are really concerned with looking cool – but you don’t need brain research to tell you that,” she said.
Friends also provide teens with opportunities to learn skills such as negotiating, compromise and group planning. “They are practicing adult social skills in a safe setting, and they are really not good at it at first,” Feinstein said. So even if all they do is sit around with their friends, teens are hard at work acquiring important life skills.
“The brakes come online somewhat later than the accelerator of the brain,” said Johnson, referring to the development of the prefrontal cortex and the limbic system respectively. At the same time, “teens need higher doses of risk to feel the same amount of rush adults do,” Johnson said.
Taken together, these changes may make teens vulnerable to engaging in risky behaviors, such as trying drugs, getting into fights or jumping into unsafe water. By late adolescence, say 17 years old and after, the part of the brain responsible for impulse control and long-term perspective taking is thought to help them reign in some of the behavior they were tempted by in middle adolescence, according to McNeely and Blanchard.
“Thinking Brain” and the “Feeling Brain”
The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry has looked at why their teenagers occasionally behave in an impulsive, irrational, or dangerous way. At times, it seems like teens don’t think things through or fully consider the consequences of their actions. Adolescents differ from adults in the way they behave, solve problems, and make decisions. There is a biological explanation for this difference. Studies have shown that brains continue to mature and develop throughout childhood and adolescence and well into early adulthood.
Scientists have identified a specific region of the brain called the amygdala that is responsible for immediate reactions including fear and aggressive behavior. This region develops early; however, the frontal cortex, the area of the brain that controls reasoning and helps us think before we act, develops later. This part of the brain is still changing and maturing well into adulthood.
Other changes in the brain during adolescence include a rapid increase in the connections between the brain cells and making the brain pathways more effective. Nerve cells develop myelin, an insulating layer that helps cells communicate. All these changes are essential for the development of coordinated thought, action, and behavior.
Changing Brains Mean that Adolescents Act Differently than Adults
Pictures of the brain in action show that adolescents’ brains work differently than adults when they make decisions or solve problems. Their actions are guided more by the emotional and reactive amygdala and less by the thoughtful, logical frontal cortex. Research has also shown that exposure to drugs and alcohol during the teen years can change or delay these developments.
Based on the stage of their brain development, adolescents are more likely to:
- act on impulse
- misread or misinterpret social cues and emotions
- get into accidents of all kinds
- get involved in fights
- engage in dangerous or risky behavior
Adolescents are less likely to:
- think before they act
- pause to consider the consequences of their actions
- change their dangerous or inappropriate behaviors
These brain differences don’t mean that young people can’t make good decisions or tell the difference between right and wrong. It also doesn’t mean that they shouldn’t be held responsible for their actions. However, an awareness of these differences can help parents, teachers, advocates, and policy makers understand, anticipate, and manage the behavior of adolescents.
Effective Communication Strategies for Adolescents
Establishing communications is the most vital part of School Security Personnel’s three missions as Officer, Teacher and Counselor, as in order to meet these missions, there must first be established a firm process of communications.
There are six basic steps to the communications process.
- The sender has an idea to convey
- The sender formulates a message and sets the objective of the communication (encoding)
- The sender identifies the receiver (the target audience) for the communication (planning)
- The sender chooses the communication method and transmits the message (medium)
- The receiver gets the communication (decoding)
- The sender confirms communication was received and conforms the communication based on feedback received (feedback)
There is always the risk that communications efforts will fail. To maintain best efforts:
- Constant reaffirmation of goals helps keep the transmission of ideas on track.
- Constantly evaluate feedback to assure the idea is being understood and make sure you understand what the student means by asking questions and by restating their idea in your words and seeking confirmation.
- Remove barriers to communication. Instead of talking behind the desk, move your chair around to sit face to face for girls and side by side for boys. Always maintain the same plane of view when communicating, do not stand over a seated person to talk with them.
- Beware of your body language and maintain an open stance to talk. Folded arms, leaning back in the chair and rolling eyes can inhibit communications. Observe the student’s body language to determine understanding.
- Maintain the status of the participants in the conversation, you are the adult, and they are the teen, which means you are not their friend but also you are not their enemy. Be friendly and approachable, but also remain professional and respectful and require the same from them.
- If you don’t have an answer to a question, tell them so – they will respect honesty more than a made-up answer. Remember they have all the answers on their cell phone, so it may be appropriate to look it up at the time.
- Avoid jargon and slang. It is usually not advisable to try to mimic teen slang as an adult. It sounds very false and patronizing.
- Be a good listener. Listen carefully to what is said and allow the student to complete the entire thought. Ask questions for clarity. Don’t immediately offer suggestions until the entire situation is discussed.
- Use “Door Openers” with questions such as “can you tell me what happened” or “what do you think about this?”. This allows the student to present the subject in their words and in their point of view. Avoid being judgmental, rather allow the student to tell their point of view.
- Maintain honesty with the student. Tactfully question things you need clarification on. Discuss events and behavior, rather than personal traits.
Show empathy when it is important and appropriate.