Journal
CURRENT DIRECTIONS IN PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE
Volume 27, Issue 2, Pages 116-122Publisher
SAGE PUBLICATIONS INC
DOI: 10.1177/0963721417738144
Keywords
adolescence; social cognition; decision making
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Funding
- Royal Society
- Wellcome Trust
- Jacobs Foundation
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Adolescence is a period of life often characterized by behaviors that, prima facie, are irrational, such as seemingly excessive risk taking and impulsivity. However, these behaviors can be interpreted as adaptive and rational if one considers that a key developmental goal of this period of life is to mature into an independent adult in the context of a social world that is unstable and changing. It is proposed that for adolescents, the social risk of being rejected by peers outweighs other potentially negative outcomes of decisions, such as threats to one's health or the prospect of getting caught. Furthermore, peer influence in adolescence can lead to prosocial as well as antisocial behaviors. Neurocognitive mechanisms of peer influence include the social reward of being accepted by one's peer group, arousal, and increased mentalizing, which is associated with development of the social brain network. The findings from cognitive neuroscience and developmental psychology studies fit with recent public health evidence that the opinions of peers are particularly important to adolescents in areas such as school antibullying and antismoking campaigns.
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