PSYCH-190 Lecture Notes - Lecture 15: Spermarche, Psych, Precocious Puberty

• School: Diablo Valley College
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSYCH-190
• Professor: Dickerson

Document Summary

There can be wide individual variation in the onset and progression of puberty: precocious puberty: very early onset and rapid progression, pubertal onset that occurs before the age of 8 in girls and before the age of. Psychological dimensions of puberty: body image (2 & 3) Psychological dimensions of puberty: hormones and behavior (1 & 2) Hormonal factors are thought to account for at least part of the increase in negative and variable emotions that characterize adolescents. In boys, higher levels of androgens are associated with violence and acting-out problems: there is also some indication that increased estrogen levels are linked to depression in adolescent girls. Hormonal factors alone are not responsible for adolescent behavior such as depression or risk taking behavior. Many environmental factors influence hormonal activity: parent-adolescent relationships, stress, eating patterns, sexual activity, depression. One type of health-compromising behavior that increases in adolescence is risk taking.