Personality Development of Adolescents



Personality Development of Adolescents

Introduction

The transition period of about a decade from childhood into adulthood is termed adolescence. Adolescence is a very crucial stage of development when it comes to children. This development takes place not only in the physical appearance but also in the personality of the child. Personality may be defined as the unique characteristics of a person in terms of behavior, thinking pattern and feelings. These behaviors are consistent although changes may occur due to the various factors that have the power to influence personality. The paper discusses the changes in the brain of adolescence and the impact of social and physical environment on the personality development of adolescents.

Changes in the brain and personality

The most important changes that take place in the brain of an adolescent pertain to the wiring diagram of the brain and the prefrontal cortex (PFC) which performs all the planning functions of the brain. The functioning of the frontal outer mantle or the prefrontal cortex becomes very efficient and complex at the same time during adolescence. The PFC is the latest part of the body situated at the front lobes. Its full development gets delayed up till adolescence. The human brain is like a computer and the neural connections inside the brain may be termed as circuits (Thompson & Vidal, 2007).

The important of the need to understand the changes in the brain and its implications on the adolescents and the families may be understood from the fact that shaping the development of the brain is in the hands of the teenagers themselves. Positive experiences lead to an adaptive brain. The teenagers who go through adverse experiences in this age are bound to remain disturbed for the rest of their life, given that they are not supported by adults. In ...