effects of hormones

• Researchers have argued that hormones have a fairly direct effect or activational effect on psychological functioning in adolescence
• Steinberg has shown that pubertal maturation

  increased emotional distance from parents (Steinberg, 1987)

  • adolescent autonomy and parent–child conflict, and decreased closeness (Steinberg, 1988)
  • sensation seeking and understanding of social emotions
• Awkwardness and self-consciousness is associated with puberty when knowing you are going through these changes
• Large study by Gure et al (2006) examined feelings about maturation, relationships with parents and self-perception in Turkish adolescents the results showed that boys were somewhat more positive than girls. However, for both sexes feelings were generally positive, especially regarding growth spurtThe least-liked aspect of puberty for both sexes was skin changes; like acne
• and late maturing did not feel so good
• Early maturers reported more conflict with parents than did on-timematurers
• 14 and 16 are old late maturing in puberty
• Early puberty in boys is associated with: Increased athletic ability and social advantage - their growth spurt favours strengthand sporting achievement, usually highly valued in boys' groups (Mussen & Jones,1957)
• Early puberty in girls is associated with: Earlier sexual activity - engage in sexual activity earlier, and get married and havechildren earlier, and were less likely to be in tertiary education than late maturers Increased delinquency – several studies have shown that early maturation isassociated with higher levels of antisocial behaviour in girls
• Caspi et al. (1993) - the Dunedin longitudinal study -examined whether early maturation in girls was related todelinquency and compared girls from age 11 to age 14 insingle and mixed sexed school
• Early-maturing girls are more at risk of being delinquentbut only in mixed-sex schools. this is because they assocaite with older peers who are more norm breaking activities