It’s often said that adolescents are impulsive partly because their brains aren’t fully developed. Now a new book adds fuel to the discussion, describing how the period of adolescence is a lot longer these days, from age ten to twenty-five. It also shows that the brain at this time is highly malleable, and much more easily influenced by both positive and negative experiences.
This program was originally broadcast on November 3, 2014.
- Laurence Steinberg - psychology professor at Temple University. He is an expert on adolescence, researching adolescent brain development, risk-taking and decision-making, parent-adolescent relationships, adolescent employment, high school reform, and juvenile justice. He has also been an expert witness in numerous cases involving adolescents. His newest book is called "Age of Opportunity."
