SDERA Parent Workshop August 11, 2015 What happens to the adolescent - - PDF document

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SDERA Parent Workshop August 11, 2015

What happens to the adolescent brain at puberty?

 Puberty brings about changes in arousal and motivation before the adolescent has fully developed their skills in regulating emotion and behaviour. (http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.294.1453&rep=rep1&type= pdf)  Hormonal changes = sex-related growth and behaviour, impacts social behaviour and emotional experience  During adolescence: Pruning of grey matter that is unused – other connections strengthened (brain becomes more efficient).  The brain matures at different rates for different regions – first: more basic functions.  Maturation of the prefrontal cortex (decision-making, planning, impulse-control) comes later and continues into adulthood.

What parts of the adolescent brain aren't fully mature and what are the implications for their behaviour?

 Adolescence involves heightened emotional reactivity and impulsivity due to the way the brain matures

• As above – prefrontal cortex matures more slowly than other regions.
• In contrast, regions involved in emotional responses (e.g. amygdala) are fully developed

and may be even more active than for adults.

 Adolescents significantly more likely than adults to make risky decisions (according to studies of risk-taking – driving, sex etc)

• Although their intellectual maturity is similar to adults, adolescents more

susceptible to peer influence and difficulty controlling impulses, so their decision-making is poorer.

• The amygdala may be called upon during decision-making more so than for

adults – act according to emotions and instincts.  Heightened responsiveness to rewards + poor impulse-control = less likely to consider consequences of their actions  May prefer decisions that provide immediate rewards

• Includes social rewards; thus especially prone to take risks when peer approval is

at stake

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Recommendations for parents:

 Allow healthy risks – encourage independence and thinking about consequences  Talk through decisions – discuss possible actions and consequences. Helping them to learn how to think logically and make healthy decisions.  Provide guidance and realistic boundaries  Positive role-modelling  Educate young people about their brain development to help them become more aware of why they feel and behave the way they do.  Make sure they get enough sleep – poor sleep makes it harder to control impulses, maintain attention  Delay children’s consumption drinking alcohol – can damage the developing brain.

• Alcohol appears to damage the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex, affecting memory

and learning, judgement, decision-making and impulse control.

• Adolescents who drink heavily have smaller prefrontal lobes than those of the same age

who don’t drink.

• Sequential damage that alcohol inflicts on neural tissue:

 Proactive parenting

• Talk in casual situations
• Listen hard and ask lots of questions
• Ask questions that need a sentence answer
• Check your child understands what was said
• Talk about what to do, rather than what not to do
• Let your children talk (even if you don’t like what they are saying)
• Use praise and positive words (use ‘I’)
• Talk shoulder to shoulder…(eg while walking, driving etc)
• Try not to solve their problems instead give them a chance to do this by kindly asking

things like: “What would you like me to help you with?”

• If say ‘no’ explain why
• Establish rules and consequences bound in love

Links for parents: http://raisingchildren.net.au/articles/brain_development_teenagers.html http://www.actforyouth.net/resources/rf/rf_brain_0502.pdf http://healthywa.wa.gov.au/Healthy-WA/Articles/F_I/Information-for-parents-alcohol-and-the- developing-brain http://www.ted.com/talks/sarah_jayne_blakemore_the_mysterious_workings_of_the_adolescent_ brain?language=en www.sdera.wa.edu.au

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Developmental Progression of Use of Internet and Social Networking Sites

Australia has some of the highest social media usage in the world, with the use of social media increasing significantly with age among young Australians. Statistics from 2009 revealed that 8 to 10 year olds spent approximately 30 minutes per day on social media, increasing to 150 minutes per day on average for 15 to 17 year olds (Australian Communications and Media Authority, 2009). With the increasing popularity of social media since 2009 it is clear that these figures would now be a conservative estimate of average use among school-age children. The 2013 ACMA report verifies that the use of social media has increased from 2009, and that use increases with age. Current statistics describe the use of social networking at 88% for 12-13 year old, 97% for 14-15 year olds and 99% for 16-17 year olds (ACMA, 2013).

Development of Social Interaction Online

The popularity of social media within Australia, particularly amongst children and adolescents, has seen significant increases in the exposure and adoption of social media by younger children. Due to its rapidly changing nature, official research and statistics cannot always keep pace with activity occurring on social media. It is important to recognise that whilst we provide guidance on trends of use, young people are being exposed to social media at increasingly younger ages, and consequently the information provided can be used as a general guide only. Children‟s social networks, home life, and school environment will all influence when and how young people are exposed to social media. Relevant Reading Australian Communications and Media Authority. (2013). Like, Post, Share: Young Australians‟ experience of social media, Quantitative research report. Australian Communications and Media Authority. Australian Communications and Media Authority. (2011). Like, Post, Share: Young Australians‟ experience of social media, Qualitative research report. Australian Communications and Media Authority. Holloway, D., Green, L. and Livingstone, S. (2013). Zero to eight. Young children and their internet use. LSE, London: EU Kids Online.

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Early Childhood: generally from ages 4-8

Entertainment is the primary reason for Internet use among this age group. Consequently, users of this age typically engage in online gaming more than any other age group. Initially young people favour single player games but may shift to multi-player games where they can communicate with others online. Multi-player games become more popular as younger children begin to explore interacting with others in an online environment. Popular interactive sites for this age group may include Moshi Monsters, Disney, Club Penguin and Minecraft. Young people also begin to understand the value of using the Internet to find information about their interests, hobbies, and school assignments and so may begin to explore social media sites such as YouTube, Wikipedia, Yahookids, askkids etc. However, it is important to recognise that the majority of children this age may not always understand how to appropriately process the information they collect.

Middle Childhood: generally from ages 8-11

Studies from 2013 indicate that YouTube was the most popular social networking site amongst the 8 to 11 aged group despite the service being intended for users aged 13 years and older. The statistics reported 53% of 8-9 year olds and 69% of 10 to11 year olds had used the YouTube site within the preceding four weeks (ACMA, 2013). Other social networking and gaming sites used by this age group include Moshi Monsters, Club Penguin, Habbo Hotel, Minecraft, Terraria, Instagram and Facebook (ACMA, 2013). From about the age of 10 years social interactions become increasingly important. Although 10-11 year olds continue to play online games at a similar frequency as earlier age groups, the type of game is now most commonly a multi-player game, often with open chat functions. In addition to using chat in multi-player games, some children at this age start exploring more chat specific programs, such as Skype, which are more commonly used by teenagers. Boys and Girls Statistics do reveal some differences in Internet use between boys and girls. An Australian national study found 11% of girls compared to 18% of boys within the ages of 10 to11 indicated they had not used these social networking services within the preceding four weeks prior to the data collection (ACMA, 2013). In addition, boys generally move away from the types of online games played in their younger years and start to engage in online games typically laden with violence and strategy. There is also an increase in the number of girls engaging in multi-player games. Girls, however, tend to spend more time communicating with friends and are more likely than boys to organise offline meetings through the use of chat functions within multi-player games. ACMA (2013) reports also indicate that girls are more likely than boys to send private messages and post status updates.

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Early adolescence: generally from ages 11-13

Statistics from 2012 showed that 67% of young people aged 12-13 years visited social media sites on a frequent basis (ACMA, 2013). Popular social networking sites visited on a regular basis include Youtube, Instagram, Twitter and Habbo Hotel. Popular social networking activities in children aged 12-13 years of age include posting comments on people‟s posts and photos (71%), sending private messages (68%), posting status updates (63%) and posting public messages (63%) (ACMA, 2013). This age group is typically using all areas of online activity from social networking sites to uploading and downloading videos/photos from their mobile phones. Restrictions on many social networking sites to users aged 13 years and older see a large increase in uptake of social networking sites (such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter) at this time. The main reasons for using social networking sites at this age are to keep their friends updated on what they are doing and where they are going.Internet users in this age group have not developed the thinking skills to appropriately handle multitasking and may struggle to manage their time online. This may result in frustration and poor concentration and decision making whilst online. Boys and Girls Boys continue to play multi-player games but are also starting to engage in online chat

• programs. Girls tend to choose to chat with friends rather than play online games. Both

genders seem equally interested in puzzle and strategy type games. Role play games in virtual worlds are appealing to young people as they being to explore their identity. These games allow young people to create an avatar or online identity through which they can interact with other online users.

Middle adolescence: generally from ages 13-15

Teenagers of this age are actively exploring self-expression while also increasing their social

• interactions. Statistics from 2012 showed that 85% of young people aged 14-15 years visited

social media sites on a frequent basis (ACMA, 2013). Facebook was the most popular social networking service for young people aged 12-15 years of age, with 72% of 12-13 year olds and 87% of 14-15 year olds using the site (ACMA, 2013). Other social networking services that followed include Youtube, Skype, Windows Live Messenger and Twitter (ACMA, 2013). Instagram and Snapchat have recently gained popularity with this age group. Users in this age category are exposed to more aspects of social networking sites as they engage more in posting comments, uploading pictures or videos, sending messages, tagging, and interacting with more people both known and unknown on their social networking sites. Transitioning through adolescence is a time for discovering their self- identity and wanting to adhere more to peer group values than parental values. They are more likely at this age to engage in risky online behaviour than 12-13 and 16-17 year olds. Involvement in social networking at this age is key to staying socially connected with their

• peers. As a result young people report they are willing to be a part of social networking sites

despite the potential negative consequences. Young people are now “uploaders”, or content creators, rather than only downloaders of online content. This includes keeping a blog,

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Late Adolescence (16 to 19 year olds)

Once adolescents are 16-18 years old they have become extremely confident online and it has become an integrated part of their everyday life. Teenagers aged 16-18 years are more self-assured and now have more specific interests which may affect their online activity. Adolescents of this age participate in activities on social networking sites that include posting comments on someone else‟s post or wall and sending private messages (89%),updating their status (85%), posting public messages (83%), posting photos or videos (79%) and tagging (78%) (ACMA, 2013). They tend to visit websites to express their opinions about something, download music, search for videos, and download files using websites or P2P networks more than when they were younger. Older teens are more likely to use the Internet as a place to obtain information they do not feel comfortable asking others about. Information on health topics are also sought more by these users. A small percentage search for websites with negative health content such as self-harm, pro-anorexia, and drugs however, the vast majority conduct positive health information searches. An increasing interest in content classed as „adult‟ emerges for some

• users. These searches include topics such as pornography and violence that are searched

more frequently by boys.