Why Teenagers Take Risks: A Parents Guide to the Teenage Brain
How Brain Development Fuels Impulsivity and What You Can Do to Help
Non-members can read here :)
Navigating adolescence can be a rollercoaster, for teens and their parents. Your once sweet, chubby chocolate-covered toddler has grown into a hormone-driven, moody, fiercely independent teenager. Among the changes that underlie a lot of teenage behavior and decisions are heightened impulsivity and risk-taking — acting in the spur of the moment and making rash choices regardless of the consequences.
These changes are not just “teenage symptoms,” but a natural part of development — they mark a period when your adolescent is moving through changes in the brain that impact behavior and decision-making.
“Parts of the brain responsible for weighing actions, judging situations, and making decisions — are the last to mature,” writes neuroscientist Frances E. Jensen in her book The Teenage Brain
Until your teen’s brain fully develops, they might need a little help from you to navigate these turbulent years.
The adolescent brain: a work in progress
During adolescence, the brain experiences a dramatic makeover. The system in the…
