During adolescence, several neurobiological changes take place that influence a young person's behavior. For example, the axons in the frontal lobe continue to be myelinated. Describe key neurobiological changes and how they affect adolescent behavior

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

The myelination process during adolescence results in information being able to move faster in the frontal cortex. Also, during adolescence there is an increase in neural connections followed by a pruning down to fewer, more selective and strong connections. Each adolescent's experiences and choices affect which connections will get "wired together" for efficiency and which connections will be pruned away. Areas of the brain become more integrated and connected in these networks of associations.
The changes are not complete until early adulthood, so adolescents often have trouble avoiding risks and controlling impulses. This can be explained by the pace of development for two key systems involved in making sound decisions about risky behaviors and controlling impulsive behavior—the limbic system and the prefrontal cortex of the brain. The limbic system develops earlier; it is involved with emotions and reward-seeking/novelty/risk-taking/sensation-seeking behaviors. The prefrontal lobe takes more time to develop; it is involved with judgment and decision making.
As the limbic system matures, adolescents become more responsive to pleasure and emotional stimulation. In fact, adolescents appear to need more intense emotional stimulation than either children or adults, so these young people are set up for taking risks and seeking thrills.