The Teen Brain: Psycholigical Research

Introduction

Research has shown that new technologies have enabled scientists to track the growth of the brain. There is always a connection between brain function, brain development, and someone’s behavior. Teenage brains are different from adult brains since in adults the brain tends to work together during decision-making which is not the case for teenagers. For years now teenagers have been misunderstood and misperceived leading to miscommunication in perspective of what they think the adult is thinking and how they feel to respond to adults. Their behavior is inconsistent, and it is believed to be associated with their intelligence level being far below average and being impulsive. Their behavior can be explained by the hormonal imbalance, how they rapidly grow, and other regions of the brain that are still developing.

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The Brain Changes Throughout Life

There are surprising changes that take place in a human brain throughout life before the age of 20s. The parts of the brain become more interconnected with other areas during adolescence, and the brain gains a processing power hence the brain increases in the matter. Adolescents start to learn that urge of making decisions on their own. It is during this time that they make irrational decisions since they are influenced by emotions that are controlled by the limbic system. At puberty teens, this limbic system is responsible for bringing intense emotions within the adolescent. The development leads to traits like sexual attraction towards another person, feeling aggressive, experiences of fear and fury. Parents should take responsibility by trying to have some minimal control over their teen children’s lives so that they can help them in decision making and raising their self-esteem.

Chemical Imbalance in the Brain Teen Years

Teens tend to think separately with the absence of mind, and according to research, their social anxiety increases. They become more sensitive, responsive to the influence they are being given by their friends, this is one of the distinguishing characteristics. Dopamine is the chemical that is responsible for these character traits. The chemical makes the teen feel good when given a compliment or feeling sick when he or she feels left out for instance. During this time, the ventral striatum connects more with the prefrontal cortex.

Adolescents are incredibly reactive to social awards, and this is because, within this brain region, their bodies produce the gonadal hormones in plenty which make them be attracted to rewards. Social rewards are reflected in a teen’s hormones. Teenagers are risk-takers, the oxytocin hormone drives the social connections rewarding. Another hormone that is responsible for impulse control is testosterone-it is a reliable prediction of status-relevant to motivation and behavior. They tend to do drugs, get themselves into a fight to determine superiority, drive at high speed when they have friends in the car; all these are to help maintain their social status.

Why Is Sleep Important for the Teen Brain?

Most psychologists have spent more of the time researching while teenagers stay up late at night, and they discovered it is due to irritability and depression. These are significant contributions of inadequate sleep which are a factor of misconduct, emotional health as well as physical illness.

Conclusion

In conclusion, risk-taking is directly related to teenagers’ brain development since some other parts of the brain are still growing. They are impulsive and unpredictable since they value social rewards rather than thinking about the certain consequences that might come after because they want to be identified amongst other teenagers.