Putting It Together

The following chapters describe theories and concepts related to adolescent development, which spans approximately ages 12 to 18, with some attention as well on emerging adulthood (continuing up to about age 25). These chapters explore developments in different domains as the teenager gains cognitive skills and navigates identity development. Review the chapters below to enhance your knowledge of different perspectives during the adolescent years of life.

• Arnett, J. J., & Jensen, L. A. (2025). Adolescence and emerging adulthood: A cultural approach (7th ed.). Pearson. Available in the courseroom via the VitalSource Bookshelf link.
• Chapter 3, “Cognitive Foundations.”
• Chapter 4, “Cultural Beliefs.”
• Chapter 5, “Gender.”
• Chapter 6, “The Self.”
• Chapter 12, “Media.”

After you have read from your textbook, you may wish to use the following links to learn more about brain functions. View these illustrations and reflect on how the brain works; think about how the information is connected to the psychology of adolescence.

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MOVING INTO ADOLESCENCE RESULTS IN NEW

capacities for self-reflection, as we described in Chapter 3. Adolescents can think about themselves in a way that younger children cannot. The ability for abstract think-ing that develops in adolescence includes asking abstract questions about ones self, such as What kind of person am I? What am I good at, and not-so-good at? How do other people perceive me? What kind of life am I likely to have in the future? Younger children can ask these questions, too, but only in a rudimentary way. With ado-lescents growing cognitive capacities, they can now ask these questions of themselves more clearly, and they can come up with answers that are more complex and insightful. This enhanced cognitive capacity for self-reflection has a variety of consequences. First, it means that adolescents change in their self-conceptions, that is, in their answers to the question What kind of person am I? Second, it means that adolescents change in their self-esteem, that is, in their capacity for evaluating their fundamental worth as a per-son. Third, it means that adolescents change in their emo-tional understanding as they become more aware of their own emotions and as their enhanced understanding of themselves and others affects their daily emotional lives. Fourth, it means that adolescents change in their identities, that is, in their perceptions of their capacities and charac-teristics and how these fit into the opportunities available to them in their society. Each of these four changes con-tinue through emerging adulthood, but identity issues are especially central to emerging adulthood, even more than in adolescence in many respects. In this chapter, we describe each of these four aspects

of self-development. Then in the last section, we examine multicultural selves. We address what it means to come

of age as a member of an ethnic group with exposure to more than one culture, such as African American, Chinese Canadian, and Turkish Dutch. We also focus on ways that globalization is influencing self-development for adoles-cents and emerging adults, especially in developing coun-tries, as they navigate both local and global values and ideas about who to become and how to live.

SECTION 6.1

Self-Conceptions How people think about themselves changes with age, but throughout life, our self-conceptions are shaped by the cultures we live in. Cultures differ in their emphasis upon interdependence, independence, and self-esteem. Across cultures, however, self-conceptions become more abstract and more complex in adolescence.

Culture and the Self Learning Objective 6.1 Summarize the differences among cultures in conceptions of the self.

The general distinction introduced in Chapter 4, between individualistic and collectivistic cultural values, and between broad and narrow socialization, comes into play in considerations of the self, and perhaps especially on this topic. As noted in Chapter 4, in discussing cultural differences in conceptions of the self, scholars typically distinguish between the independent self promoted by individualistic cultural values and the interdependent self promoted by collectivistic cultural values (DiBianca Fasoli & Raeff, 2021; Heine, 2020; Markus & Kitayama, 1991; Raeff, 2010). Cultures that emphasize an independent, individual-istic self also promote and encourage reflection about the self. In such cultures it is seen as a good thing to think about yourself, to consider who you are as an independent per-son, and to think highly of yourself (within certain limits, of courseno culture values selfishness or egocentrism). Americans are especially known for their individualism and their focus on self-oriented issues. It was an American who first invented the term self-esteem (William James, a leading psychologist and philosopher in the late 19th cen-tury), and the United States continues to be known to the rest of the world as a place where the independent self is valued and promoted (Heine, 2020; Raeff, 2010). However, not all cultures look at the self in this way or

value the self to the same extent. In cultures characterized by collectivistic values and narrow socialization, an inter-dependent conception of the self prevails. In these cultures, the interests of the groupthe family, the kinship gro

Steinberg is not our course textbook, so you should not be using that for Part 2: Connecting Concepts. Please make sure that you revise that section using a real quote from our course textbook only. Let me know if you have any questions about that. You only have one attempt remaining.

Criterion

Relate developmental psychological terminology, concepts, and research to mental processes.

Your Result:

NON-PERFORMANCE

Does not relate developmental psychological terminology, concepts, and research to mental processes.

Faculty Comments:

S2: This is still not correct. Steinberg is NOT our course textbook. Please choose a real quote from our course textbook only. No other source is acceptable here. S1: “Part 2: Connecting Concepts” is supposed to be a comparison of the article and the textbook. But you did not use the textbook, so this section is non-performance. Please follow the instructions and use the correct sources.