Download Unit Two Understanding Adolescent Development

Unit Two
Understanding Adolescent Development
Unit Goal
To provide officers with a basic understanding of healthy adolescent development across multiple
domains and how adolescent development can affect youth behavior
Scope
In this unit, officers will gain an understanding of how the brain develops and receive an overview of
adolescent social, emotional, and physical development. Officers will learn about how development
across these various domains impacts youth behavior and what the most recent adolescent brain
research reveals about adolescent behavior.
Performance Objectives
At the conclusion of the unit, officers will be able to:
2-1 Name the developmental processes that take place during adolescence.
2-2 Describe the impact of brain research on understanding adolescent behavior.
2-3 Identify specific developmental disruptions often occurring in adolescence.
Materials

Video 2.1: The Wiring of the Adolescent Brain (clip length: 5:58) from Frontline’s Inside the
Teenage Brain series, which is described at the end of the module

Case Study: Tony

Case Study: Henry

Video 2.2: What fMRI Scans Tell Us About the Adolescent Brain (clip length: 3:24) *

Handout: MacArthur Foundation Research Network on Adolescent Development and Juvenile
Justice Issue Brief 3: Less Guilty by Reason of Adolescence

Video 2.3: Peer Influence and Adolescent Behavior (clip length: 4:04) *
*
Requires access to the Internet
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Unit Outline
I.
Objectives
II. Defining Adolescence
III. Adolescent Development
a. Cognitive Development
b. Moral Development
i. Case Study (Tony)
c.
Social and Identity Development
d. Physical Development
i. Case Study (Henry)
e. Brain Development
IV. Differences between an Adolescent and an Adult
a. Self-Control
b. Short-Sightedness
c.
Susceptibility to Peer Pressure
V. Important Considerations
VI. Disruptions in Normal Development
VII. Implications
a. Purpose of Criminal Punishment
b. Mitigation, Not Excuse
10
Training Aids
Slide 2-1
Understanding Adolescent Development
Slide 2-2
Objectives
 Describe and discuss basic adolescent
development across multiple areas
(cognitive, moral, social, physical)
 Describe the most recent brain
development research and what it reveals
about adolescent behavior
 Explore developmental disruptions and
their potential impact on behavior
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
Describe your expertise in adolescent
development.
Review the objectives of this unit, which are
to provide information on the developmental
process of adolescence and to identify areas
that influence that process.
 Definition of adolescence
 Identification of stages and key areas of
adolescent development: cognitive, moral,
social and identity, and physical
 Examination of key developmental changes
at each stage of adolescence
 Impact of new brain development research
and information on juvenile justice policy and
practice
 Exploration of disruptions in normal
adolescent development
This unit will:
 familiarize officers with the developmental
processes that take place in adolescence;
 enhance officers’ ability to identify changes
that occur during adolescence that will
impact interaction with youth; and
 foster officers’ understanding of how to
promote positive outcomes for youth when
officers are called to respond and intervene.
11
Training Aids
Slide 2-3
Video 2.1: The Wiring of the
Adolescent Brain
Slide 2-4
Defining Adolescence
 What does adolescence mean to you?
 What words would you use to describe
this stage of life?
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
Training Aid: Video 2.1 – The Wiring of the
Adolescent Brain (clip length: 5:58)
Introduce video clip from Frontline’s episode,
Inside the Teenage Brain. The video clip
introduces key concepts involved with
adolescent development. In particular, it
explains early brain development and how this
relates to risk and behavior. (More information
on the video is provided at end of module.)
As stated by Dr. Laurence Steinberg, head of
the MacArthur Research Network on
Adolescent Development and Juvenile Justice,
before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee in
2007:
“We have always known that adolescents
behave differently than adults. Young
people are more impulsive, more shortsighted, more willing to take risks, and
more susceptible to the influence of their
peers. Anyone who has raised a teenager,
taught a teenager, counseled a teenager,
or been a teenager knows this. Scientific
discoveries about brain development have
helped us understand why this is true, but
they haven’t changed the basic story line.
Those who founded a separate system of
juvenile justice in America some 100 years
ago had it right, even without the benefit of
brain scans, when they made a
commitment to treating young people who
have violated the law differently than how
we treat adults. It is a commitment that we
need to reaffirm today. If brain research
helps us do this, I’m all too happy to tell you
what scientists are learning.”
Ask officers to work with others at their table to
write a definition of adolescence and choose a
spokesperson to present the definition. Allow
three minutes to complete this task. After three
minutes, ask each spokesperson to present
definition. Write down key words on board/flip
chart.
12
Training Aids
Slide 2-5
Adolescent Development
Adolescence begins around ages 10 to 13
and involves changes in
 cognitive development (thinking),
 moral development,
 social and identity development,
 physical appearance (puberty), and
 brain development.
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
Explain that there are a number of beliefs about
adolescence as a phase of development
between childhood and adulthood, as well as a
number of beliefs on when adolescence begins
and ends. Most people view adolescence as a
complex “growing up” period between
childhood and adulthood. The dictionary
defines adolescence as the period of physical
and psychological development between
puberty and maturity. “Psychological” often
refers to thinking and feeling and “puberty” to
physical and emotional changes.
Adolescence begins around the ages of 10 to
13, ends between19 to 21, and involves
significant changes in thinking, feeling, social
skills, physical appearance, and moral beliefs.
During this period, youth are gearing up for
adult responsibilities. (Refer back to the
officers’ ideas on defining adolescence and
demonstrate how their terms relate.)
Adolescence involves moving toward
independent thinking and living.
Remind officers that adolescents are on their
way; they are not there yet. They need
structure, supervision, safety, support, and
guidance for healthy development.
Slide 2-6
Adolescent Development
 Areas can overlap, develop, and grow at
different rates in individual youth.
 Therefore, we must consider the individual
characteristics of each adolescent.
Emphasize to officers that each of these areas
can overlap, develop, and grow at different
rates. Explain that because each dimension of
development can develop differently in any
adolescent, youth may present very differently
over time and have not yet formed the
“package” of individual characteristics they will
have as adults. A physically mature adolescent
may function as a younger person cognitively,
socially, or emotionally. A physically immature
adolescent may be more mature intellectually
or morally.
Because the pace of maturity and the
interactions of the developmental dimensions
13
Training Aids
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
are specific to each individual, each adolescent
must be considered individually.
Slide 2-7
Cognitive Development
Changes in the way individuals learn and
think about the world around them, how they
take perspective on their interactions with
others, and how they make decisions
Slide 2-8
Cognitive Development
During this period, adolescents become better
able to
 take the perspective of others;
 consider alternatives or likely
consequences;
 be reflective in their decision-making; and
 begin to question assumptions and
perceptions.
14
Cognitive development refers to the way
individuals learn and think about the
environment/ world around them (Seifert &
Hoffnung, 1994).
 If a 4-year-old child doesn’t follow signs
posted on a bus, is he or she held
responsible? No, because the child’s
cognitive development has not formed
enough to allow reading.
 At about age 11 or 12, adolescents can think
about that which cannot be seen, heard,
tasted, smelled, or touched (abstract ideas).
They begin to think about their own thoughts
and focus on what could be (Craig, 1999).
 Adolescents can imagine, for example, what
they would be like if they were born into a
rich versus a poor family (Seifert & Hoffnung,
1994). They have a developing ability to plan
and think ahead. However, this ability is not
fully formed.
Adolescents’ ability to take the perspective of
others is still developing, as is the ability to
identify relevant information or to consider likely
short- and longer term consequences for their
decisions. However, these are developing
abilities that are still maturing. As they mature,
adolescents may be uneven in their ability to
take the perspectives of others or in the
thoughtfulness of their decisions.
Training Aids
Slide 2-9
Cognitive Development
Other characteristics of cognitive development
that can compromise a youth’s ability to “think
like an adult” include the following:
 Errors in perceptions of risk
 Prone to sensation-seeking
 Short-sighted, “present-centered” thinking
 Self-centered, egocentric thinking
 Sense of personal invulnerability
 Unrealistic, even “magical” thinking
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
Adolescents also share developmental qualities
that make their thinking and decision-making
different than those of mature adults.
 Adolescents tend to perceive and weigh risks
differently; are more prone to sensationseeking; and are more likely to be shortsighted than adults. For example, they are
more likely to engage in a thrill-seeking or risky
experience “in the moment” without
considering the consequences.
 Adolescents tend to be more self-centered in
their thinking and believe that bad
consequences for actions or decisions will not
actually happen to them. For example, many
teens can tell you it is a bad idea to drive
without a seatbelt, but they are less likely to
believe that they personally would be injured in
a car accident because they were not wearing
a seatbelt.
 Adolescents also have a greater tendency to
“convince themselves” that their perceptions or
judgments are the right ones, even in the face
of much contradicting information.
Note to Instructor: Head injury can have a
tremendous effect on the way people develop
cognitively and morally. Ask officers if they know
anyone who has suffered from brain damage
(e.g., a head injury sustained in a car accident).
Discuss how that person differs in thinking and
comprehending. Point out that it is likely that
officers will encounter a youth who has suffered
head injury and it is certain that they will
encounter adolescents whose brains have not
fully developed and may appear very similar to
adults with brain injury.
Slide 2-10
Moral Development
Moral development has to do with the values
(personal beliefs) on which to base decisions
concerning right and wrong or good and bad
(moral decisions) (Daeg de Mott,1998).
15
Training Aids
 System of values (personal beliefs) on which
to base decisions concerning right and
wrong
 Gradual move from moral decisions based
mostly on rules or consequences to
themselves ….
- “I am supposed to…”
- “I will get in trouble if I…”
 …to decisions based on empathy with
others or principles.
- “How would I feel if I was in this
situation?”
- “What would be fair in this situation?”
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
Ask officers what influences a youth’s values and
beliefs (e.g., peers, church, parents,
grandparents, school, coaches, etc.). Point out
that many of these things or people influence the
teens with whom officers work, but sometimes
such influences are largely absent.
Between the ages of 11 and 12, adolescents
begin to try to work out moral problems by
seeking feedback and reinforcement from the
people around them. As adolescents mature, they
shift from caring about what others think to what
society says is right or wrong, and they rely more
on their personal moral beliefs (Vasta, Haith &
Miller, 1995).
Research shows that adolescent offenders often
function at lower levels in their moral
development than adolescents of the same social
background who did not commit crimes. If
adolescents are engaged in moral decisionmaking with others who have not reached higher
levels of moral development, then they, too, are
unlikely to reach higher levels of moral
development.
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Training Aids
Slide 2-11
Moral Development
 Moral development is often deeply shaped
by the values and moral decisions of
parents, extended family members, peers,
community members, and others.
 This is one reason for the variation in
adolescents’ senses of right and wrong,
fairness and justice, loyalty or obligation,
accounting for the needs of others, and the
morality of certain behaviors.
Slide 2-12
CASE STUDY: Tony
Tony is a 16-year-old boy. His
cousin robs a local convenience
store and later asks Tony to hide him. Tony
agrees and is subsequently charged with
“Accessory After the Fact.” He is offered a
plea deal, but only if he will testify against his
cousin. Tony feels protective of his cousin.
Tony also believes that the convenience store
has been a front for drug dealing, which he
thinks at least some local police officers know
and have been “on the take” from the store
owner.
Tony’s mother tells him to “do the right thing,
tell the truth” and to testify. His lawyer tells him
to take the plea and let his cousin fend for
himself. Tony’s older brother tells him to be
loyal to his cousin and refuse the plea
agreement. Tony worries that if he is perceived
as a “snitch,” people might hurt him or his
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
Adolescents build their sense of moral
development from many sources, but most
powerfully from observing the values and moral
decisions of their families, peers, and others
whom they admire or respect.
Adolescents don’t always receive a consistent
message about what is “right,” what is “wrong,”
and what to consider in making moral decisions.
Many have to reconcile competing messages
about values, morals, and moral decision-making.
As a result, many adolescents make different
decisions at different times, depending upon who
they are with or the moral direction they have
received. How many of us have experienced a
“basically good kid” who made a selfish,
misguided, or even tragic decision that involved
“right and wrong,” not considering the impact of
his/her behavior upon others?
Consider asking an officer to read aloud the case
study of Tony (presented as a handout at the end
of this module.)
The purpose of the case study is to elicit officers’
thoughts on the many potential influences on an
adolescent’s decision. In this scenario, Tony is
receiving conflicting advice from different sources
with whom he has different kinds of relationships.
He must also consider a range of possible
consequences resulting from his decision. Ask
officers to comment on:
 As a 16-year-old boy, how might Tony look at
this situation?
 What might play a role in his decision:
- Tony’s relationship with his cousin, including
Tony’s resentment for putting him into this
situation?
- The advice from Tony’s mother?
- The advice from his attorney?
- The advice from his brother?
17
Training Aids
family. He resents that his cousin got him into
this situation in the first place.
Slide 2-13
Social and Identity Development
Adolescents undergo changes in how they
perceive and experience
 themselves and others, including
themselves as members of a broader
community with ethnic and cultural, socioeconomic, political, and other factors to their
identity;
 their ability to function on their own;
 relationships with family, peers, and
community; and
 themselves as emerging adults, including as
persons with sexual identities and interests.
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
- Tony’s perception that some police are
corruptly involved?
- His fear of retaliation if seen as a “snitch”?
A core developmental task for adolescents is to
develop a consistent sense of both social and
individual identity. Adolescents typically explore
means by which they experience themselves as
individuals and how others perceive them.
Adolescents construct a sense of the broader
social world and how they fit into that world. They
develop social identities shaped by their
understanding of cultural, ethnic, socio-economic,
political, and other factors. They can and do think
about how their lives would be different if they
were of a different race or ethnicity, were richer or
poorer, were of another family or community, or
lived in a different time or place.
Adolescents begin to explore their ability to
function on their own, even as they remain
connected in different ways with their families,
peers, and members of their community. They
begin to try different roles and identities and to
consider how others respond to them when they
adopt these new roles. This also involves thinking
about themselves as young adults, including the
emergence of themselves as individuals with
sexual identities and interests.
If time permits, consider with officers how
adolescents explore and experiment with social
and personal identities (e.g., embracing or
rejecting clothing and hairstyles, different kinds of
friends, preferences in music or leisure activities,
and values and beliefs). Ask officers how an
adolescent’s exploration of identity might be
shaped by cultural, social, economic, or other
factors.
18
Training Aids
Slide 2-14
Social and Identity Development
Sense of purpose
 Participating in activities and gaining
acknowledgement for participation
 Pro-social behavior rewarded; deviant
behaviors punished
Sense of control
 The youth’s sense of control moves from
external to internal. (“My world is
controlled by others” changes to “My
behaviors determine what happens to
me.”)
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
Facilitate discussion of how activities, such as
sports, arts, hobbies, community service, and
jobs, contribute to a sense of purpose.
Gaining acknowledgment is powerfully
reinforcing and the rate of reinforcement is a
powerful predictor of behavior. Schools can offer
positive experiences in academics, sports, or
other extra-curricular activities. Communities
can offer experiences through church activities,
clubs, and organizations. All of these can help
build children’s self-confidence.
Ask officers how their interaction with juveniles
can promote “purpose” in their lives.
Discuss the idea of control and the importance
of consistency in an adolescent’s life.
The more an adolescent can anticipate the
results of behavior, the greater his/her sense of
“control.” Adolescents are in the process of
learning how to “think before doing.” A sense of
control is promoted when adults consistently
reward or recognize pro-social/positive/good
behaviors and consistently discipline or ignore
deviant/ destructive/wrong behaviors. Consistent
feedback lets adolescents correctly predict the
result of their actions. They know exactly what to
expect before they act. CONSISTENCY is key
and requires adults who are actively engaged in
the lives of youth.
Point out how a youth’s sense of control
changes from the external to the internal as a
developmental process, moving from “others
decide for me” to “I decide.”
Ask officers how their interventions with youth
can promote a sense of “control” for the
developing youth.
19
Training Aids
Slide 2-15
Social and Identity Development
Belonging
 Monitoring and supervising activities
 Talking about interests and problems
Personal Identity
 Youth’s own characteristics and
competencies
 Youth’s experience of being valued and
successful in relationships for
themselves and what they can bring to
relationships
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
A good connection with positive adult role
models often predicts healthy development. A
sense of belonging comes from the belief that
parents and/or other adults from the community
are interested and want to be involved. Adults
can nurture this sense of belonging by
monitoring and supervising adolescents’
activities and encouraging adolescents to talk
about their interests and problems. Adolescents
who have a sense of belonging or connection
with good adult role models are less likely to
engage in delinquent behaviors and are more
likely to do well in school.
Define the term “identity.”
In adolescence, issues such as “Who am I?” and
“Where am I going?” are important. Feeling
competent and useful contributes to a positive
identity.
In addition to a sense of control, a positive
sense of self grows from relationships,
community involvement, parental and adult
support, and respect for individual opinions in
the family (CSR, Inc., 1997).
Slide 2-16
Social and Identity Development
Sexual Identity
 Understanding one’s own sexual orientation
and interests and how they relate to one’s
social environment
 Developing ways of expressing one’s own
sense of masculine or feminine and of
sexuality
Social Skills
 Developing ability to express needs, create
mutual relationships, manage conflicts
 Sense of capacity to bring personal
characteristics to relationships and to
experience success, affirmation
20
Developing a sexual identity is an important
aspect of development. Youth develop an
understanding of their own sexual orientation
and interests, often while sorting through
competing messages about sexuality from
sources as diverse as parents and family
members, peers, community members, and
mass and electronic media.
Adolescents develop a fundamental identity as
heterosexual, lesbian, gay, bisexual, or
transgendered. In doing so, they may explore
different kinds of sexual activity with different
partners. They also sort out how their sexual
identity fits into their immediate and broader
social environment. This includes developing a
sense of how accepted their own sexual identity
is among those around them and in the
Training Aids
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
community. Youth who experience intolerance
or even direct hostility to themselves or others
who share their sexual identity can be at
increased risk for depression, substance abuse,
and even suicide.
Adolescents develop their own understanding of
what it is to be masculine or feminine, and how
to express their sexuality. They often rely upon
social/cultural expectations, media images, and
role models as they develop an identity. For
example, adolescent males must determine
what it is to be “a man” and what attitudes,
values, beliefs, and behaviors best express
“manhood.”
As children move into adolescence, social
interactions change. Different social skills are
needed as new levels of friendship are formed,
relationships with parents and family change,
and new social situations arise. Adolescents
seek acceptance by a peer or groups they
admire. Instead of turning to the family for
support, they begin to turn to friends.
Adolescents begin to “date” and engage in
romantic relationships – a major marker of social
development in adolescence (Van Hasselt &
Hersen, 1987).
Adolescents with persisting problem behaviors
often lack the social skills necessary to develop
more appropriate conduct. Studies indicate that
delinquent adolescents often lack adequate
social and problem-solving skills and tend to
have more problems finding good social
situations. They may be less likely to problemsolve well due to poor social judgment and more
difficulty resisting bad peer influences.
Ask officers what other major social events occur
in adolescence, discussing events such as jobs,
school socials/sports, and the ability to drive.
Discuss what connections youth will make if there
are no concerned, engaged adults. Where will
21
Training Aids
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
adolescents seek belonging and acceptance
(gangs, other delinquent youth)?
Slide 2-17
Physical Development
What happens during adolescence?
 There is an increase in hormone production
in both boys and girls, which triggers
changes in brain development.
 Hormonal changes are reflected in physical
changes, but also contribute to experiences
that impact emotional development.
 Development occurs at different rates: some
early, others later.
Slide 2-18
Physical Development
Factors influencing onset of puberty include
 individual differences (e.g., genetics),
 nutritional status and medical conditions,
 gender differences, and
 racial/ethnic differences.
22
Explain that adolescent development differs
among individuals and between genders.
Ask officers what physical changes happen at
around age 10 to 12 and what activates these
changes. (Write responses down on a flip chart.)
Physical changes in adolescents are activated
by the increase of hormone production at about
age 10½ for girls and 12 to 13 for boys (Craig,
1999). For girls, this includes a growth spurt,
menstruation, pubic hair growth, development
of breasts, etc. Girls are now ovulating and
capable of getting pregnant. For boys, the
physical changes include a growth spurt,
enlargement of the testes, deepening of the
voice, and pubic hair growth. Between the ages
of 11 and 16, male adolescents experience the
first discharge of semen (sperm). Boys are now
always fertile and can produce a child if
sexually active.
Youth enter puberty at all different ages, from late
childhood into mid-adolescence. Factors
influencing the onset of puberty for any given
adolescent include individual genetic heritage,
nutritional status (poorly nourished children tend
to have delayed puberty), and gender differences.
While there is broad variation among individuals,
girls tend to begin puberty sooner than boys, as
noted earlier. Racial/ethnic differences are also
associated with different average ages for onset
of puberty.
In summary, the onset of puberty and subsequent
physical changes associated with puberty are
highly individual.
Training Aids
Slide 2-19
Physical Development
The onset of puberty impacts
 emotions and mood-regulation;
 need for increased sleep;
 physical maturity and sexual development;
 family, peer, and community relationships;
and
 expectations of others for “more mature”
ways of thinking and behaving.
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
The onset of puberty has a broad impact on
adolescents.
Since puberty involves significant changes in
hormones and hormone levels, adolescents
typically have greater variation in their emotions
and more challenges in regulating their moods.
Adolescents need more sleep to support the
significant physical changes that are underway.
Many adolescents end up getting less sleep than
they need or sleep for prolonged periods during
less scheduled times (e.g., on weekends) to
“catch up” on missed sleep.
Family, peer, and community relationships
change as youth become increasingly more
“adult-like” in physical appearance. This often
includes expectations for “more mature” ways of
thinking and behavior on the part of the
adolescent. However, as we have seen, physical
maturity does not necessarily indicate that the
youth has achieved similar levels of cognitive,
social, or emotional maturity.
Slide 2-20
Physical Development
Early maturing boys
 Popular
 Good in sports
 Positive self-esteem
 More likely to be leaders
IMPACT of early maturing for a boy can be:
 Expected to behave as if older
 May slip into risky behavior earlier
Discuss what happens when boys mature early
physically in terms of thinking, social behavior,
emotions, or moral understanding.
Early maturing boys typically gain social and
athletic advantages. They’re popular and are
good in sports. Many report positive selfesteem. They like who they are and are more
likely to be leaders of their peer groups (Craig,
1999; White, 1999).
But these advantages come with the potential
disadvantage of being expected to behave as if
they are more mature in all developmental
dimensions than they really are. Boys with
early physical maturation are at risk of adopting
“older” behaviors earlier – such as sexual
behavior, experimentation with alcohol or
drugs, or spending time with older youth who
23
Training Aids
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
may be engaging in risky behaviors
themselves.
Ask officers to consider what might be
happening to a boy developing more slowly.
Slide 2-21
Physical Development
Late maturing boys
 Initially smaller and less muscular –
disadvantage in sports
 Treated as younger than age; perceived
as less competent by adults
 Lower social status among peers
IMPACT of late maturing for a boy can be:
 May be more prone to anti-social
behavior
Compared to both male and female peers, the
late maturing boy is usually smaller, less
muscular, not as athletic, and has lower social
status among his peers.
He may be perceived as a younger child by
adults and treated as less competent or
intelligent. In reaction or to compensate, he may
act in an immature, dependent manner to get
special “breaks” for behavior from adults.
Alternatively, he may display what he believes to
be status-gaining behavior, including high levels
of aggression, to establish himself (Craig, 1999;
White, 1999).
 May have lower self-esteem due to being
teased by same-age peers
 May be childish, dependent, and
immature
 Can become highly aggressive in an
effort to establish himself
Slide 2-22
Physical Development
Early maturing girls
 Earlier puberty and menstruation
 Taller and more developed than peers
IMPACT of early maturing girls can be:
 Harder to find female friends they can
relate to
 More popular with older boys and date
earlier
24
The opposite often occurs for girls. Early
maturing girls are taller and more developed,
report feeling attractive, are more popular with
older peers, and are more likely to “date” than
their late maturing peers.
However, girls who mature early often have less
in common with their friends and experience
distress regarding the physical changes of
puberty, resulting in feeling isolated. (Girls who
experience their menstrual period early and who
were not prepared by their parents describe it as
traumatic) (Craig, 1999; White, 1999). They may
be sexually teased or approached by male peers
and older boys.
Training Aids
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
 More likely to experience stress about
physical changes (menstrual period)
Slide 2-23
Physical Development
Late maturing girls
 Later onset of puberty/physical
maturation
Late maturing girls, on the other hand, are more
popular among peers, report higher self-esteem,
and are more focused on academics (White
1999).
Facilitate discussion on why this might be the
case.
IMPACT of late maturing girls can be:
 Later onset of puberty means
development more closely parallels that
of boys
 Adults are more protective of them
 More popular among peers
 Higher self-esteem
 Tend to be more focused on academics
Slide 2-24
CASE STUDY: Henry
Henry is a 15-year-old white
male who is small for his age. His
mother and aunt refer to him as their “little
man.” Henry has few friends and has never
played any type of organized sports or
participated in clubs/organizations at school or
in the community. Teachers report that Henry
has a history of being aggressive toward other
youth and teachers, and appears to be slower
to understand school information than his
classmates.
Ask officers to read just the first paragraph of
the case study handout and underline all items
related to the physical aspects of adolescents
previously mentioned. (The case study is
presented as a handout at the end of this
module. Paragraphs 2 and 3 will be discussed
later).
Invite the officers to share and discuss their
findings and point out elements they may have
missed.
25
Training Aids
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
Slide 2-25
Brain Development
Brains of adolescents begin a complex and
prolonged process of change and development
that will persist into young adulthood.
 Monitoring and supervising activities
 Talking about interests and problems
Many of the characteristics of adolescents
reflect these brain changes.
Slide 2-26
What Science Tells Us About the
Teen Brain
Functioning of the frontal lobes is not at adult
levels.
(Steinberg, 2008)
Perhaps the most important development in
recent years for understanding adolescents has
been research on adolescent brain
development. This research is what some
people call a “paradigm shift” or a “game
changer.”
Research on adolescent brain development
provides evidence of biological underpinnings of
the characteristics of adolescence. Adolescents
are not just miniature adults. The ways in which
they differ from adults in thinking, feeling,
deciding, and behaving are reflected in the
maturation of their brains for over a decade (or
more) after the onset of puberty.
The most important conclusion to emerge from
recent research is that brain development
continues long after childhood, well into the early
adult years. In fact, scientists now believe that
adolescence may be as important in brain
development as the first three years of life, a
developmental stage that has received far more
attention from researchers, journalists, and
policymakers (Steinberg, 2007).
Interacting with teens can be frustrating because
they are so impulsive and often don’t plan. Brain
research, brain scans (e.g., MRI), and other
developmental science research offer
explanations. Physically, the brain of a teenager
is still developing. The size of the brain is as big
as it is going to get, but it is not fully developed.
 Why is this important?
Teens may simply not be able to handle
structured planning (otherwise referred to as
“executive functioning”) because the area of the
brain (note arrow on slide) that coordinates
impulse control is the last part of the brain to
develop.
Ask officers to respond to the following: What
implications does knowing that the brains of
adolescents are not fully developed have on
your work with them?
26
Training Aids
Slide 2-27
Suggested Video 2.2: What fMRI
Scans Tell Us About the Adolescent
Brain
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
Note to Instructor: To explore brain
development in more detail, consider playing the
What fMRI Scans Tell Us About the Adolescent
Brain video (clip length: 3:24). This video
requires access to the Internet. Start the video
by clicking on the screenshot on PowerPoint
slide 2-27, which links to the video on the
Internet.
Introduction to suggested video: Teens’
developing ability to engage in structured
planning is described in this video clip, which is
from episode two of the Brains on Trial with Alan
Alda series (Chedd-Angier Production
Company, 2013). In this clip, Dr. Jay Giedd of
the National Institute of Mental Health shares
what he has learned from his many years
studying adolescent brain development.
Slide 2-28
Implications
Because the brains of teenagers are not fully
developed, some of their behaviors may reflect
this immaturity. Specifically, the frontal lobe
plays a critical role in
 planning,
The frontal lobe plays a critical role in planning,
problem-solving, reasoning, and emotional
regulation.
Although it plays such a critical role in these key
functions, it is the last part of the adolescent brain
to mature. Research indicates that the frontal
lobe continues to mature in boys until the mid20’s.
 problem-solving,
 reasoning, and
 emotional regulation.
Slide 2-29
Implications
Recall your own teenage behavior:
 Did you ever do anything that could have
gotten you stopped by the police?
 Or that could have resulted in harm to you or
somebody else if things had gone wrong?
Note to Instructor: The bullet points on the
slide are rhetorical questions; don’t ask for selfdisclosure by the officers.
Since the frontal lobe is the biological
underpinning for “adult-like” thinking and
emotional regulation and since it continues to
mature through early young adulthood, it is not
realistic to expect an adolescent to be capable
of behaving as an adult. However, adolescents
may be more capable of thinking and managing
27
Training Aids
How is adolescent brain development likely to
be reflected in adolescent behavior?
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
their emotions like adults when they have
support, have reliable feedback, and are not
being asked to make decisions “in the moment”
of emotionally-charged circumstances.
List how the adolescent brain differs from an
adult brain (decision-making in risky situations,
social situations, and legal situations). Discuss
how these differences impact how we interact
with adolescents.
Slide 2-30
HANDOUT: MacArthur
Foundation Research Network
on Adolescent Development
and Juvenile Justice Issue Brief 3: Less Guilty
by Reason of Adolescence
Describe the research by the MacArthur
Foundation Research Network on Adolescent
Development and Juvenile Justice chaired by Dr.
Steinberg. Researchers in the network studied
over 900 individuals ages 10 to 30 (NOT in the
juvenile or criminal justice systems). The
participants took part in performance and selfreport measures of planning, preference for
immediate gratification, impulsivity, risk
processing, sensation-seeking, and susceptibility
to peer pressure.
The findings, as detailed on the next several
slides, demonstrate differences in how teens
think and are influenced as compared to adults.
Slide 2-31
Types of Thinking that Will “Change”
between Adolescence and Adulthood
Dr. Larry Steinberg found key differences
between adolescent and adult perception and
thinking that correlate with adolescent brain
development:
 Self-control (impulsivity)
 Short-sightedness (risk-taking)
 Susceptibility to peer pressure and other
factors that contribute to rapidly made,
often poor, decisions in emotional
circumstances
28
Teens are more prone to risk-taking because
they are more impulsive. They are less able to
understand or anticipate consequences. They
are motivated by social approval and affiliation.
Fitting in with their peers sometimes becomes
more important than almost anything else in
their lives.
Specific examples are depicted on the following
slides.
Training Aids
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
Slide 2-32
Self-Control: Impulsivity Declines with Age
Adolescents and young adults were given a test
to self-report their willingness to react in a quick,
rash manner or more carefully think through
their next decision/move. From this study of
“normal” teens, we see that impulsivity declines
with age, with a notable reduction in impulsivity
around age 16-17, but still has a substantial
impact well into early adulthood (ages 26-30).
(Steinberg et al., 2008)
Slide 2-33
Self-Control: Time Spent Thinking about
Problems Increases with Age
(Steinberg et al., 2008)
In a measure of impulsivity, participants were
given problems that were both simple and
complex in nature. They were then timed to see
how long they took to solve those problems. On
the simpler problems, all age groups were very
similar, taking about the same amount of time to
decide their move. However, on the more
complex problems, only the older age category
of young adults (18-30) took the additional time
to decide their move. The younger age groups
(10-15) took virtually the same amount of time to
decide to move, ignoring the difficulty and
moving impulsively instead of strategically.
This is a great example of why so many teens
when asked, “What were you thinking?” respond
with “I don’t know” or “Nothing.” They are telling
the truth. They probably weren’t thinking at any
more of a sophisticated level when they
engaged in that behavior then when they were
deciding what to eat for breakfast that morning.
29
Training Aids
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
Slide 2-34
Sensation-Seeking Declines with Age
And, not surprisingly, as youth get older, they
not only spend more time thinking about their
problems and what to do, they also are less
prone to thrill or novelty seeking. Adolescents
between the ages of 12-17 are more likely to
choose/endorse sensation-seeking options, but
as youth get older, they are less likely to engage
in sensation-seeking behavior.
(Steinberg et al., 2008)
Slide 2-35
Risk Perception Declines and Then
Increases after Mid-adolescence
Adolescents are more prone to taking risks. In
addition, their perception of risk is faulty.
As adolescents’ interests in and preference for
engaging in sensation-seeking or risky situations
peaks (see Slide 2-34), their perception that the
activity is actually risky is declining. In other
words, they are engaging in more dangerous
behavior, but fail to recognize that danger.
Given this information, it’s not surprising that
insurance rates are so high for teens and that
law enforcement spends so much time working
teenager-related traffic situations.
(Steinberg, 2009)
Slide 2-36
CASE STUDY: Henry
Henry has been arrested in the
past for theft and possession of
marijuana. He’s on probation for those
delinquent acts. When Henry went through the
local Juvenile Assessment Center, testing
showed that Henry had difficulty thinking about
if-then and what-if situations. When asked about
where he would like to be in two or three years,
30
Exercise: Using the case study of Henry, ask
officers to read and underline all the thinking and
moral aspects they can identify. Review with the
officers and point out any that they may not have
identified. Briefly highlight Henry’s challenges in
realizing the consequences of his decisions, his
vague thoughts about the future, and how peers
influenced his behavior – as all of these issues
are delineated on the next few slides.
Training Aids
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
Henry stated, “I’m not sure, maybe going to
school.” Henry stated that he took clothes from
a local shopping mall because, “Everyone had
jacked some really cool stuff and I was the only
one that didn’t have anything. They said I was a
momma’s boy. The only problem was I was the
one stupid enough to get caught.” His response
for smoking marijuana was, “I don’t know why
everyone is freaking out and making a big deal
out of this with me. Everyone does it.”
Henry has very little contact with his father. His
father has been in and out of jail since Henry
was a year old and is currently serving time in
another state. Henry’s mother has been in and
out of jail herself for crimes such as
possession of drugs and worthless check
writing. Henry has lived with his grandmother,
his aunt, and/or his uncle when his mom was
in jail.
Slide 2-37
Considering Impact of Current Decisions
on Future Increases with Age
When participants were asked to consider
matters in the future, those in mid-adolescence
had the least view/perspective into the future.
This is good evidence as to why they are much
more worried about the game on Friday night,
the dance, what’s for lunch, or how they appear
to their peers right now than for things in the
future like college, jobs, family, a criminal record,
etc.
Think of this in a practical application. A teenager gets into a fight and gains “status” as the
victor among his/her peers. Adults threaten him
with expulsion, arrest, legal proceedings,
detention, etc. Which holds more weight for that
youth right then and there?
(Steinberg et al., 2009)
31
Training Aids
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
Slide 2-38
More Resistant to Peer Influence With Age
Referring back to the MacArthur study of those
900 “average” (i.e., not exclusively delinquent)
subjects, point out that when placed in situations
with peer influence, the ability to resist peer
influence increases with age, moving into
average adult levels in very late adolescence.
(Steinberg & Monahan, 2007)
Slide 2-39
Peers Increase Risky Driving among
Teenager and College Students, but Not
Adults
Reiterate that as teens’ desire for risk-taking
behavior increases, their view of a situation
as risky is at one of its lowest points. This
slide looks at a driving situation with peer
influence.
The MacArthur study looked at driving behaviors
in youth 10-12 years old, teens 13-18 years old,
and adults 20-30 years old. When put in the
driving simulation alone, all three age groups do
equally well in managing the driving situations.
However, as peers are added to the simulation,
adolescents’ risk-taking behavior doubles,
youth’s increases (but not as much), and the
adults remain unaffected.
(Gardner & Steinberg, 2005)
This demonstrates how influential peers are on
adolescent decision-making and risk-taking
behavior. As many of you are aware, some
states have limited and/or forbid peers in the
cars with beginning drivers without the presence
of an adult.
Point out that there is a heightened need for
healthy supervision and guidance right at a point
when many youth are desperately attempting to
push their parents/guardians away.
32
Training Aids
Slide 2-40
Suggested Video 2.3: Peer Influence
and Adolescent Behavior
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
Note to Instructor: To supplement the
information just discussed, consider playing the
Peer Influence and Adolescent Behavior video
(clip length: 4:04). This video requires access to
the Internet. Start the video by clicking on the
screenshot on PowerPoint slide 2-40, which
links to the video on the Internet.
Introduction to suggested video: This video
features Dr. Steinberg discussing the risky
driving tendencies among adolescents
described on the previous slide. It is from
episode two of the Brains on Trial with Alan Alda
series (Chedd-Angier Production Company,
2013).
Slide 2-41
What Were You Thinking?
Think of a situation in which you were
astounded by the poor judgment or self-control
exercised by an adolescent.
What differences existed between how you
saw the situation and how the adolescent saw
the situation in terms of
 self-control or the perceived need for selfcontrol?
 perception of risk to self or others?
 perception of the likely outcomes of the
situation?
Ask for a volunteer to describe a situation in
which he/she was astounded by the poor
judgment or self-control of an adolescent. Use
the exercise to emphasize the differences
between how the volunteer assessed the
situation and how the adolescent assessed the
same situation.
Summarize the discussion by pointing out the
differences between how the volunteer and the
adolescent assessed the same situation in terms
of self-control, risks to self or others, the likely
outcomes in the situation, the consequences for
the youth for the decision that he/she made, and
the role of peers in decision-making.
 impact of the decision on the youth’s future?
 impact of peers on decision-making in the
situation?
Slide 2-42
Important Considerations
Age-norms in the study for youth are based on
the average in the general community.
Discuss the implications of considering
delinquency in the context of development.
Based on the MacArthur study, age-norms are
based on “average” youth in the general
community. These were kids from average
33
Training Aids
Most youth seen by juvenile courts are not
“average.”
 Greater intellectual deficits
 More developmental delays
 Greater prevalence of mental disorders
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
schools and young adults from average colleges
and neighborhoods.
Most youth seen by juvenile courts are not
“average.” They tend to have greater intellectual
deficits, more developmental delays (recall the
key areas of development: physical, cognitive,
social, moral), and a greater prevalence of
mental disorders (anxiety, depression, bipolar,
substance abuse, trauma disorders, etc.), which
will be discussed in the next unit.
ALL of these factors increase the risk for poor
decision-making, so the population encountered
by law enforcement would likely have amplified
results if given the same tests administered in
the MacArthur studies.
Also, many “delinquent behaviors” are actually
normative during adolescence because of their
preference for risk, peer pressure, shortsightedness, etc.
 Alcohol use is normative for the majority of
teens (NOT DESIRABLE).
 Delinquent behavior, such as stealing,
trespassing, some drug use (particularly
unauthorized use of over-thecounter/prescription medications and
marijuana), is normative (NOT DESIRABLE).
 Aggressive behavior is normative
(NOT DESIRABLE).
Ask officers (but don’t expect an answer), “What
were you doing when you were 16?”
An adolescent’s involvement in the juvenile justice
system is often the result of a combination of
individual, family, environmental, and systemic
factors, rather than adolescence alone.
Slide 2-43
Disruptions in Normal Development
34
Sometimes normal adolescent development is
disrupted by some type of traumatic experience,
typically referred to as an “adverse childhood
experience.” These adverse childhood
Training Aids
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
Traumatic experiences can disrupt normal
adolescent development – at the very least,
they create additional challenges.
experiences can include recurrent physical
abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse, and
emotional and physical neglect.
Adverse childhood experiences include the
following:
 Recurrent physical abuse
 Recurrent emotional abuse
 Sexual abuse
 Emotional or physical neglect
 Caretaker instability (e.g., multiple foster
placements)
 Parental mental illness, substance abuse,
criminality
 Exposure to domestic violence
The cumulative effect of these experiences can
influence a youth’s development across a range
of symptoms and can have a fundamental
impact on brain development, learning, and
perceptions.
These disruptions can add to the existing risks
for poor decision-making that all teenagers
experience by virtue of being adolescents.
All of these create/exacerbate risks of poor
decision-making.
Slide 2-44
Summing Up Adolescents
Ask officers what important facts from this unit will
impact how they will interact with adolescents as
part of their job.
 Adolescents are less able to control
impulses and more driven by thrill.
 Adolescents tend to be short-sighted and
oriented to immediate gratification.
 Adolescents are less able to resist pressure
from peers.
 Psychosocial maturity continues to develop
into early adulthood, long after adolescents
have become as “smart” as adults.
Slide 2-45
Implications
 Adolescents may not have all the neural
“hardware” in place for adult behavior.
 This “hardware” is especially important in
non-routine situations when judgment calls
need to be made and emotional influences
are high.
Dr. Steinberg’s presentation of these and other
findings to the U.S. senate judiciary committee
impacted the decision for youth to not be eligible
for the death penalty. His research continues to
influence decisions by states to reconsider the
lower ages of criminal court transfer and to keep
youth in the juvenile court process (and out of
the adult system).
Emphasize this key point to officers: Although
general policy statements can be formed based
35
Training Aids
 Like other general trends of development,
these brain trends can say little about a
specific individual.
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
on this information, individual differences in
development will still bring into question the level
of culpability in given delinquent situations.
Pose these questions:
 As law enforcement officers, what do you do
with this information when responding to a
situation?
 How do you take into account a youth’s
limitations in thinking?
 What about the heightened impact of
emotional influences of peers in the situation?
 Is it safe to assume every youth is the same
and equally punishable as a person of any
age who may have broken the law?
Briefly highlight one of the essential elements of
a CIT-Y program: diverting youth from the
juvenile justice system to appropriate treatment
programs when it is appropriate to do so.
Slide 2-46
Purpose of Criminal Punishment
 To prevent crime – through deterrence,
incapacitation, or rehabilitative intervention
 To “do justice” – to impose justly deserved
punishment in proportion to offender’s
blameworthiness
Slide 2-47
Mitigation, Not Excuses
 Juvenile offenders are not adult criminals.
 “…..immaturity is morally relevant to
blameworthiness and should have mitigating
weight.”
 Our focus is on mitigation, not excuse.
36
Acknowledge that we all want safe homes and
communities before asking:
 “How do we achieve this in light of a system of
‘justice’ and what we understand about
adolescent development?”
 “How blameworthy is a youth who may not
have an adult’s intellectual capacity to make
decisions?”
According to Steinberg (2007), “There are
several important implications of this brain
research for juvenile justice policy and practice.”
First, adolescents are less responsible for their
behavior than are adults. In a legal system like
ours, which punishes in proportion to an
offender’s responsibility for his actions, juvenile
offenders should not be punished as harshly as
we punish mature adults, even when they have
committed comparable crimes. The juvenile
system does not excuse youth of their crimes;
Training Aids
Content/Instructional Delivery Notes
rather, it acknowledges the development stage
and its role in the crimes committed, and
punishes appropriately.
Second, teenagers are still “works in progress,”
and many of them do things out of youthful
impetuousness (i.e., impulsivity, recklessness)
that they would not do just a few years later,
when their brains are more fully developed. It is
therefore important that we treat adolescents
who have broken the law in ways that will not
impair their subsequent development. We have
the capacity to hold juveniles accountable for
their misdeeds in ways that get them back on
track, instead of punishing them in ways that
derail their transition to productive adulthood. In
the U.S. Supreme Court ruling of 2012 that
barred mandatory life sentences for juveniles,
Justice Kagan wrote, “Mandatory life without
parole for a juvenile precludes consideration of
his chronological age and its hallmark features –
among them immaturity, impetuosity, and failure
to appreciate the risks and consequences”
(Supreme Court of the United States, 2012).
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, we know
that adolescent behavior is not driven by the
brain alone. In supervised and supportive
environments, teenagers behave better. That’s
why we should focus our efforts on creating
family and community contexts that help protect
teenagers from their own immaturity. One thing
we know for certain is that preventing
delinquency in the first place is less costly and
far easier than responding to it after the fact.
37
Materials
Video
Inside the Teenage Brain
Length: 60 minutes
Frontline
Instructions
This video consists of several sections that can be used to supplement an instructor presentation, help
instructors prepare for this module, or to provide more information for officers. It can be found online at
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/teenbrain/ or by searching online for “Inside the Teenage
Brain.”
Sections:

The Teen Brain is a Work in Progress

How Much Can Science Tell Us?

Do your Teens Seem Like Aliens?

From Zzzzzzzzz’s to A’s - Sleep
Summary of Video
In “Inside the Teenage Brain,” FRONTLINE chronicles how scientists are exploring the recesses of the
brain and finding some new explanations for why adolescents behave the way they do. These discoveries
could change the way we parent, teach, or perhaps even understand our teenagers.
New neuroscience research has shown that a crucial part of the brain undergoes extensive changes during
puberty – precisely the time when the raging hormones often blamed for teen behavior begin to wreak havoc.
The vast majority of brain development occurs in two basic stages: growth spurts and pruning. In utero
and throughout the first several months of life, the human brain grows at a rapid and dramatic pace,
producing millions of brain cells.
“This is a process that we knew happened in the womb, maybe even in the first 18 months of life,”
explains neuroscientist Dr. Jay Giedd at the National Institute of Mental Health. “But it was only when we
started following the same children by scanning their brains at two-year intervals that we detected a
second wave of overproduction.”
38
This second wave – occurring roughly between ages 10 and 13 – is quickly followed by a process in
which the brain prunes and organizes its neural pathways. “In many ways, it’s the most tumultuous time
of brain development since coming out of the womb,” says Giedd.
Confronted by these new discoveries, academics, counselors, and scientists are divided on just what all
this means for children.
“The relationship between desired behaviors and brain structure is totally unknown,” John Bruer tells
FRONTLINE. He is president of the James S. McDonnell Foundation and author of The Myth of the First
Three Years. “This simple, popular, newsweekly-magazine idea that adolescents are difficult because
their frontal lobes aren’t mature is one we should be very cautious of.”
This FRONTLINE report also looks at research that is helping scientists understand another puzzling
aspect of adolescent behavior – sleep.
Mary Carskadon, director of the E.P. Bradley Hospital Sleep Research Laboratory at Brown University,
has spent years mapping the brains of sleepy teens. She has calculated that most teens get about seven
and a half hours of sleep each night, while they need more than nine. Some say these sleep debts can
have a powerful effect on a teen’s ability to learn and retain new material – especially abstract concepts
like physics, math, and calculus.
Despite all the new scientific research, “Inside the Teenage Brain” suggests that there is a consensus
among experts that the most beneficial thing for teenagers is good relationships with their parents. Even
Dr. Giedd wonders about the kinds of lessons parents can draw from his science. “The more technical
and more advanced the science becomes, often the more it leads us back to some very basic tenets. ...
With all the science and with all the advances, the best advice we can give is things that our grandmother
could have told us generations ago: to spend loving, quality time with our children.”
Ellen Galinsky, a social scientist and the president of the Families and Work Institute, has seen scientific
fads come and go. But she says her research for a book about children shows there are enduring lessons
for parents. Drawing on her interviews with more than a thousand children, she found that, to her
surprise, teens were yearning for more time and more communication with their parents, even when they
seemed to be pushing them away. She told FRONTLINE, “Even though the public perception is about
building bigger and better brains, what the research shows is that it’s the relationships, it’s the
connections, it’s the people in children’s lives who make the biggest difference.”
American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry:
http://www.aacap.org/cs/root/facts_for_families/facts_for_families
39
Materials
Case Study: Tony
Tony is a 16-year-old boy. His cousin robs a local convenience store and later asks Tony to hide him.
Tony agrees and is subsequently charged with “Accessory After the Fact.” He is offered a plea deal, but
only if he will testify against his cousin. Tony feels protective of his cousin. Tony also believes that the
convenience store has been a front for drug dealing, which he thinks at least some local police officers
know and have been “on the take” from the store owner.
Tony’s mother tells him to “do the right thing, tell the truth” and to testify. His lawyer tells him to take the
plea and let his cousin fend for himself. Tony’s older brother tells him to be loyal to his cousin and refuse
the plea agreement. Tony worries that if he is perceived as a “snitch,” people might hurt him or his family.
He resents that his cousin got him into this situation in the first place.
40
Materials
Case Study: Henry
Henry is a 15-year-old white male who is small for his age. His mother and aunt refer to him as their “little
man.” Henry has few friends and has never played any type of organized sports or participated in
clubs/organizations at school or in the community. Teachers report that Henry has a history of being
aggressive toward other youth and teachers, and appears to be slower to understand school information
than his classmates.
Henry has been arrested in the past for theft and possession of marijuana. He’s on probation for those
delinquent acts. When Henry went through the local Juvenile Assessment Center, testing showed that
Henry had difficulty thinking about if-then and what-if situations. When asked about where he would like to
be in two or three years, Henry stated, “I’m not sure, maybe going to school.” Henry stated that he took
clothes from a local shopping mall because, “Everyone had jacked some really cool stuff and I was the only
one that didn’t have anything. They said I was a momma’s boy. The only problem was I was the one stupid
enough to get caught.” His response for smoking marijuana was, “I don’t know why everyone is freaking out
and making a big deal out of this with me. Everyone does it.”
Henry has very little contact with his father. His father has been in and out of jail since Henry was a year
old and is currently serving time in another state. Henry’s mother has been in and out of jail herself for
crimes such as possession of drugs and worthless check writing. Henry has lived with his grandmother,
his aunt, and/or his uncle when his mom was in jail.
41
Materials
MacArthur Foundation Research
Network on Adolescent
Development and Juvenile
Justice Issue Brief 3: Less Guilty
by Reason of Adolescence
In 2005, in a landmark decision, the U.S. Supreme Court outlawed the death penalty for offenders who
were younger than 18 when they committed their crimes. The ruling centered on the issue of culpability,
or criminal blameworthiness. Unlike competence, which concerns an individual’s ability to serve as a
defendant during trial or adjudication, culpability turns on the offender’s state of mind at the time of the
offense, including factors that would mitigate, or lessen, the degree of responsibility.
The Court’s ruling, which cited the Network’s work, ran counter to a nationwide trend toward harsher
sentences for juveniles. Over the preceding decade, as serious crime rose and public safety became a
focus of concern, legislators in virtually every state had enacted laws lowering the age at which juveniles
could be tried and punished as adults for a broad range of crimes. This and other changes have resulted
in the trial of more than 200,000 youth in the adult criminal system each year.1
Proponents of the tougher laws argue that youth who have committed violent crimes need more than a
slap on the wrist from a juvenile court. It is naïve, they say, to continue to rely on a juvenile system
designed for a simpler era, when youth were getting into fistfights in the schoolyard; drugs, guns, and
other serious crimes are adult offenses that demand adult punishment. Yet the premise of the juvenile
justice system is that adolescents are different from adults, in ways that make them potentially less
blameworthy than adults for their criminal acts.
The legal system has long held that criminal punishment should be based not only on the harm caused,
but also on the blameworthiness of the offender. How blameworthy a person is for a crime depends on
the circumstances of the crime and of the person committing it. Traditionally, the courts have considered
several categories of mitigating factors when determining a defendant’s culpability. These include

impaired decision-making capacity, usually due to mental illness or disability,

the circumstances of the crime—for example, whether it was committed under duress, and

the individual’s personal character, which may suggest a low risk of continuing crime.
Such factors don’t make a person exempt from punishment – rather, they indicate that the punishment
should be less than it would be for others committing similar crimes, but under different circumstances.
Should developmental immaturity be added to the list of mitigating factors? Should juveniles, in general,
be treated more leniently than adults? A major study by the Research Network on Adolescent
Development and Juvenile Justice now provides strong evidence that the answer is yes.
42
The Network’s Study of Juvenile Culpability
The study of juvenile culpability was designed to provide scientific data on whether, in what ways, and at
what ages adolescents differ from adults.
Many studies have shown that by the age of sixteen, adolescents’ cognitive abilities – loosely, their
intelligence or ability to reason – closely mirror that of adults. But how people reason is only one influence
on how they make decisions. In the real world, especially in high-pressure crime situations, judgments are
made in the heat of the moment, often in the company of peers. In these situations, adolescents’ other
common traits – their short-sightedness, their impulsivity, their susceptibility to peer influence – can
quickly undermine their decision-making capacity.
The investigators looked at age differences in a
number of characteristics that are believed to
undergird decision-making and that are relevant to
mitigation, such as impulsivity and risk processing,
future orientation, sensation-seeking, and resistance to
peer pressure. These characteristics are also thought
to change over the course of adolescence and to be
linked to brain maturation during this time. The
subjects – close to 1,000 individuals between the ages
of 10 and 30 – were drawn from the general population
in five regions. They were ethnically and
socioeconomically diverse.
The study’s findings showed several characteristics of adolescence that are relevant to determinations of
criminal culpability. As the accompanying figure indicates, although intellectual abilities stop maturing
around age 16, psychosocial capability continues to develop well into early adulthood.
Short-Sighted Decision-Making
One important element of mature decision-making is a sense of the future consequences of an act. A variety
of studies in which adolescents and adults are asked to envision themselves in the future have found that
adults project their visions over a significantly longer time, suggesting much greater future orientation.
These findings are supported by data from the Network’s culpability study. Adolescents characterized
themselves as less likely to consider the future consequences of their actions than did adults. And when
subjects in the study were presented with various choices measuring their preference for smaller,
immediate rewards versus larger, longer-term rewards (for example, “Would you rather have $100 today
or $1,000 a year from now?”), adolescents had a lower “tipping point” – the amount of money they would
take to get it immediately as opposed to waiting.
How might these characteristics carry over into the real world? When weighing the long-term consequences
of a crime, adolescents may simply be unable to see far enough into the future to make a good decision.
Their lack of foresight, along with their tendency to pay more attention to immediate gratification than to
long-term consequences, are among the factors that may lead them to make bad decisions.
43
Poor Impulse Control
The Network’s study also found that as individuals age, they become less impulsive and less likely to
seek thrills; in fact, gains in these aspects of self-control continue well into early adulthood. This was
evident in individuals’ descriptions of themselves and on tasks designed to measure impulse control. On
the “Tower of London” task, for example – where the goal is to solve a puzzle in as few moves as
possible, with a wrong move requiring extra moves to undo it – adolescents took less time to consider
their first move, jumping the gun before planning ahead.
Network research also suggests that adolescents are both less sensitive to risk and more sensitive to
rewards—an attitude than can lead to greater risk-taking. The new data confirm and expand on earlier
studies gauging attitudes toward risk, which found that adults spontaneously mention more potential risks
than teens. Juveniles’ tendency to pay more attention to the potential benefits of a risky decision than to
its likely costs may contribute to their impulsivity in crime situations.
Vulnerability to Peer Pressure
The law does not require exceptional bravery of citizens in the face of threats or other duress. A person
who robs a bank with a gun in his back is not as blameworthy as another who willingly robs a bank;
coercion and distress are mitigating factors. Adolescents, too, face coercion, but of a different sort.
Pressure from peers is keenly felt by teens. Peer influence can affect youth’s decisions directly, as when
adolescents are coerced to take risks they might otherwise avoid. More indirectly, youth’s desire for peer
approval, or their fear of rejection, may lead them to do things they might not otherwise do. In the
Network’s culpability study, individuals’ reports of their vulnerability to peer pressure declined over the
course of adolescence and young adulthood. Other Network research now underway is examining how
adolescent risk-taking is “activated” by the presence of peers or by emotional arousal. For example, an
earlier Network study, involving a computer car-driving task, showed that the mere presence of friends
increased risk-taking in adolescents and college undergraduates, though not adults. 2
Although not every teen succumbs to peer pressures, some youth face more coercive situations than
others. Many of those in the juvenile justice system live in tough neighborhoods, where losing face can be
not only humiliating but dangerous. Capitulating in the face of a challenge can be a sign of weakness,
inviting attack and continued persecution. To the extent that coercion or duress is a mitigating factor, the
situations in which many juvenile crimes are committed should lessen their culpability.
Confirmation from Brain Studies
Recent findings from neuroscience line up well with the Network’s psychosocial research, showing that
brain maturation is a process that continues through adolescence and into early adulthood. For example,
there is good evidence that the brain systems that govern impulse control, planning, and thinking ahead
are still developing well beyond age 18. There are also several studies indicating that the systems
governing reward sensitivity are “amped up” at puberty, which would lead to an increase in sensationseeking and in valuing benefits over risks. And there is emerging evidence that the brain systems that
govern the processing of emotional and social information are affected by the hormonal changes of
puberty in ways that make people more sensitive to the reactions of those around them – and thus more
susceptible to the influence of peers.3
44
Policy Implications: A Separate System for Young Offenders
The scientific arguments do not say that adolescents cannot distinguish right from wrong, nor that they
should be exempt from punishment. Rather, they point to the need to consider the developmental stage
of adolescence as a mitigating factor when juveniles are facing criminal prosecution. The same factors
that make youth ineligible to vote or to serve on a jury require us to treat them differently from adults
when they commit crimes.
Some have argued that courts ought to assess defendants’ maturity on a case-by-case basis, pointing to
the fact that older adolescents, in particular, vary in their capacity for mature decision-making. But the tools
needed to measure psychosocial maturity on an individual basis are not well developed, nor is it possible to
distinguish reliably between mature and immature adolescents on the basis of brain images. Consequently,
assessing maturity on an individual basis, as we do with other mitigating factors, is likely to produce many
errors. However, the maturing process follows a similar pattern across virtually all teenagers. Therefore it is
both logical and efficient to treat adolescents as a special legal category – and to refer the vast majority of
offenders under the age of 18 to juvenile court, where they will be treated as responsible but less
blameworthy, and where they will receive less punishment and more rehabilitation and treatment than
typical adult offenders. The juvenile system does not excuse youth of their crimes; rather, it acknowledges
the development stage and its role in the crimes committed, and punishes appropriately.
At the same time, any legal regime must pay attention to legitimate concerns about public safety. There
will always be some youth – such as older, violent recidivists – who have exhausted the resources and
patience of the juvenile justice system, and whose danger to the community warrants adjudication in
criminal court. But these represent only a very small percentage of juvenile offenders. Trying and
punishing youth as adults is an option that should be used sparingly.
Legislatures in several states have begun to reconsider the punitive laws enacted in recent decades.
They have already recognized that prosecuting and punishing juveniles as adults carries high costs, for
the youth and for their communities. Now we can offer lawmakers in all states a large body of research on
which to build a more just and effective juvenile justice system.
1
Allard, P., & Young, M. (2002). Prosecuting juveniles in adult court: Perspectives for policymakers and practitioners. Journal of
Forensic Psychology Practice, 6, 65-78.
2
Gardner, M., & Steinberg, L. (2005). Peer influence on risk-taking, risk preference, and risky decision-making in adolescence and
adulthood: An experimental study. Developmental Psychology, 41, 625-635.
3
Nelson, E., Leibenluft, E., McClure, E., & Pine, D. (2005). The social re-orientation of adolescence: A neuroscience perspective
on the process and its relation to psychopathology. Psychological Medicine, 35, 163-174.
For More Information
MacArthur Foundation Research Network on Adolescent Development and Juvenile Justice
Temple University, Department of Psychology
Philadelphia, PA 19122
www.adjj.org
The Research Network on Adolescent Development and Juvenile Justice is an interdisciplinary, multi-institutional program focused
on building a foundation of sound science and legal scholarship to support reform of the juvenile justice system. The network
conducts research, disseminates the resulting knowledge to professionals and the public, and works to improve decision-making
and to prepare the way for the next generation of juvenile justice reform.
45
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