Lecture 2 Physical development 

Part 1 

Two times in the life where we grow a lot: two first years in your life and the years during early puberty development. The adolescent is now old enough to see these changes.  

Pubertal development 

• Puberty: the transitional process during which the primary sex characteristics (e.g, testes, ovaries) and secondary sex

Lecture 4  

Morality: right and wrong. How do we know what is right/wrong? 

Trolley problem 1 

• There is a runaway trolley barreling down the railway tracks.  Ahead there are 5 people tied to the tracks.  You are standing near a level that will switch the trolley to a different track where 1 person is tied. 

Lecture 6 Family relations 

Part 1 

• How and why do (dynamics of) parents-adolescent relationships change during adolescence? 

• How are adolescents affected by (changing) experiences in the parent-adolescent relationship, and vice versa? 

What is family? 

• Dictionary definition: married, 2-parent, biological offspring 

• But: different forms and sizes 

Lecture 8 

Part 1 – adolescents in school 

Schools: 

• Educate young people: prepare them for adulthood 

• Define young persons’ social world 

• Context in which they spend most of their waking hours 

• Shape their psychosocial development 

Classroom factors: 

• Classroom climate 

• Teachers' expectations 

Lecture 10 Love and sex 

Part 1 &2 – Adolescent romance 

• Not only being in a romantic relationship, but also: 

• Daydreaming about the person in front of you in class with whom you have never spoken 

• Claims to have a boyfriend, but denied by the boy 

• Talk on phone everyday (or texting),

Lecture 12 Depression, self-harm and suicide 

Moods and emotions 

• Relatively sudden changes in both positively- and negatively valanced affect 

• The intensity and/or frequency of negative emotion peaks in early adolescence 

• Young adolescents also experience less positive emotions 

• Emotions become more complex with a comprehension of mixed emotions 

• Dramatic changes

Lecture 12b the end of adolescence 

When does adolescence end? 

• In the past – criteria that have been used to mark entry into adulthood include: 

• Events such as marriage, child-bearing 

• Important responsibilities to provide, protect, and procreate – duties towards others 

• Gender-specific criteria 

• Average