feel so good that thoughts about a
teenagers who get straight As in algebra the maturation of the brain systems
speeding ticket (or worse), an unwanted can also do really dumb things when
responsible for thinking ahead and
pregnancy, or being grounded for
out with their buddies.
controlling impulses is influenced by
coming home smelling of beer may not
Teachers sometimes are surprised by the sorts of experiences young people
even make it onto their radar screen.
the inconsistency in students’ behavior, have, including their experiences in the
This combination of advanced (but
not yet totally mature) reasoning and
especially during the middle school
years. Understanding the nature of
classroom. Given the well-documented
finding that practicing something will
heightened sensation-seeking explains
brain development in adolescence helps strengthen the brain circuits that control
why otherwise intelligent adolescents
explain why adolescents can vacillate
that behavior, it’s important that, as
often do surprisingly foolish things.
so often between mature and immature educators, we provide adolescents
More important, the fact that teen-
behavior. When it comes to more
with opportunities to practice things
agers’ ability to control their impulses
basic abilities, such as those involving
like planning, anticipating the conse-
is immature at the same time that their
memory, attention, and logical rea-
quences of a decision, and regulating
interest in sensation seeking is stronger soning, especially under optimal condi- their own behavior. Although it can
than ever makes them vulnerable to
making mistakes. Early adolescence
is like starting a car without having a
skilled driver behind the wheel.
Just as pruning a rose bush produces
a healthier plant, so synaptic pruning
What This Means
for Adolescent Behavior
enhances the brain’s functioning.
Although scientists agree about the ways
in which the structure and function of
tions, the average 15-year-old is just
be frustrating to teachers and parents
the brain change during adolescence, the as mature as the average adult. But
when young adolescents push for more
implications of these changes for ado-
research on brain maturation indicates
autonomy, we need to respond by
lescent development are still the subject that relatively more sophisticated cog-
gradually granting them more control.
of a great deal of ongoing research and
considerable speculation. I’m often
asked when adolescents begin to think
like adults. This is hard to answer on
nitive abilities, such as thinking ahead,
envisioning the consequences of a
decision, balancing risks and rewards,
or controlling impulses, are still devel-
Assignments that require teenagers to
think ahead, make a plan, and carry
it out may stimulate the maturation of
brain systems that enable more mature
the basis of brain science alone because
oping at that age.
self-regulation.
it depends on which aspects of thinking
Initially, adolescents who haven’t
you’re concerned about.
The Need to Practice Autonomy
been given many opportunities to
It’s important to keep in mind that the
develop these capabilities may not
Both Mature and Immature
brain is very malleable, or “plastic,” and always succeed. But be patient. Over
Psychologists draw a distinction
that its development is affected by expe- time, with practice, as synapses are
between “cold” cognition (when we
rience as well as biology. Both synaptic pruned and neural circuits myelinated,
think about something that doesn’t have pruning and myelination are influenced adolescents’ ability to exercise mature
much emotional content, like how to
by experience, such that repeated acti-
control over their own behavior will
solve an algebra problem) and “hot”
vation of a specific collection of neurons improve. EL
cognition (when we think about some-
thing that can make us feel exuberant
or excited, angry or depressed, like
whether to go joyriding with friends
as a result of engaging in a particular
behavior will actually strengthen the
connections among those neurons,
which, in turn, will make them function
1 Steinberg, L., Vandell, D., & Bornstein,
M. (2011). Development: Infancy through adolescence. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
or throw a punch at someone who
more efficiently. This is one reason that
insulted a girlfriend). The systems of
practicing the same task over and over
Laurence Steinberg is the Distinguished
University Professor of Psychology at
the brain responsible for cold cognition again makes that task easier to perform Temple University, Philadelphia, Penn-
are mature by the time most individuals each time.
sylvania, and the author of You and
are 16. But the systems that control hot
Although research on brain plas-
Your Adolescent: The Essential Guide
cognition aren’t—they’re still devel-
ticity during adolescence is just in its
for Ages 10 to 25 (Simon and Schuster,
oping well into the 20s. That’s why
infancy, many scientists believe that
2011); laurence.steinberg@temple.edu.
