Adolescent Development Stage – Adolescence is one of the periods in human life. It is one of the transitional stages from childhood to adulthood. The adolescent phase is one of the crucial periods that must be accompanied and guided by adults.

The adolescent period itself is grouped into three stages, namely early adolescence, middle adolescence, and late adolescence. Before recognizing the stages of adolescence, it is better for Grameds to first understand the meaning and characteristics of adolescents.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), adolescents are people in the age range of 10 to 19 years. Meanwhile, according to RI Health Regulations Number 25 of 2014, youth is defined as residents in the age range of 10-18 years and according to the Population and Family Planning Agency (BKKBN) the age range of adolescents is 10-24 years and unmarried.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Health defines youth as a period of human life in which rapid physical, psychological and intellectual growth and development occurs. He has the characteristics of high curiosity, tends to dare to take risks from his actions without considering them carefully, and likes things that smell of adventure.

Meanwhile, according to Monks and Haditono, a teenager is someone who is in the age range of 12-21 years. Adolescence is also a transition from childhood to adulthood. Therefore, the mindset will change and proceed towards adulthood.

In line with Monks and Haditono, King also formulated the definition of youth. For him, youth is a human development which is marked by the transition from childhood to adulthood. Adolescence usually begins around the age of 12 and ends at the age of 18-21 years.

From some of the definitions above, it can be concluded that youth is a phase or period of transition from childhood to adulthood, usually occurring in the age range of 10 to 18 years. During adolescence, physical, psychological, and intellectual development usually occurs. It becomes part of the period of human development.

Characteristics of Adolescents

Adolescents can be identified through the characteristics that have been formulated by Titisari and Utami as follows.

• In terms of moral development, teenagers who are in a circle must continue to act and behave according to the norms and rules they believe in. This also causes teenagers to violate applicable rules and values, such as having sex outside of marriage, drinking alcoholic beverages, brawls, and so on.
• Personality development is an important phase for the development and self-integrity of adolescents.
• From a cognitive perspective, adolescent mentality has been able to think logically about various abstract ideas.
• In terms of emotional development tends to be high. This is because the sexual organs develop and affect the hormones that control emotions.
• Physical and sexual development which is characterized by the rate of development which usually occurs very rapidly and the presence of secondary and primary sex characteristics.
• From a psychosocial perspective, adolescents tend to separate themselves from their parents and expand their relationships with peers.

Characteristics of Teenagers

Adolescence is a phase of human life that is emotionally unstable. Not only that, the shape of the body began to change. The following are the characteristics of adolescents that can be seen from the physical and psychological changes formulated by Hurlock.

1. Adolescence as an Important Period

When children begin to enter adolescence, it will be accompanied by rapid development. Thus, causing mental adjustment and the formation of attitudes, new interests, and intentions.

2. Adolescence as a Time of Transition

At this time, teenagers enter the phase of not being a child anymore and not an adult either. They are in the stage of status transition and there is doubt or uncertainty in the youth.

3. Adolescence as a Time of Change

Physical changes develop in harmony or in tandem with changes in attitudes and behavior. There are several types of changes that occur in adolescents. First, the height of emotional intensity depends on the level of physical and psychological changes. Because, usually, emotional changes happen more quickly during the early teenage years.

Second, body changes, roles, and interests that are influenced by the social environment. Third, changes in values ​​that are influenced by changes in interests and behavior patterns of adolescents.

4. Adolescence as a Problematic Age

Each phase of development has its own main problems. However, when teenagers are faced with problems, it tends to be difficult to overcome them on their own. Because of this, many teenagers conclude that solving or solving problems is not always in accordance with expectations and in the way that has been planned.

5. Adolescence as an Age of Searching for Identity

Adolescents in this stage begin to search for identity or the essence of their lives. they start to fret, get restless, and feel dissatisfied in many ways. The search for identity is done in any way, for example reading, watching, joining communities, exchanging ideas with others, and other ways.

6. Adolescence as a Fearful Age

Teenagers are considered as a group of humans who are untidy, difficult to trust, and often destructive. This causes adults who are responsible for supervising and guiding the lives of adolescents to be afraid to take on that responsibility. They are also reluctant to be sympathetic to adolescent behaviors that are considered abnormal.

7. Adolescence as an Unrealistic Time

Teenagers will be easily disappointed and hurt if plans or goals are not achieved. They tend to see life with pink glasses. In his view, self and others are seen according to his wishes. Not from what they are.

Hopes and ideals are cultivated unrealistically. For example dreams or ideals that are not in accordance with self-ability or economy. This raises high emotions which are one of the characteristics of the early phase of adolescence.

8. Adolescence as the Threshold of Adulthood

Approaching the age of maturity or adulthood, adolescents become anxious to show that they are almost adults. At the same time eliminating the impression of stereotypes that have been attached to the new dozen and replacing it with a new view as an adult human being.

Stages of Adolescent Development

Launching from the Sehat1.com page, the stages of adolescent development are classified into three phases. Here’s an explanation.

1. Early Adolescence

The early adolescent period occurs in the age range of 10-13 years. At this stage, a person will grow faster and experience the early phase of puberty. In this stage there is hair growth in the armpits and genitals, vaginal discharge, menstruation, breast growth, wet dreams, enlarged testicles, and so on.

Not only that, appearance is also a concern. They also need to have a private area so they often form a fort or distance themselves from their family. Usually these things happen to girls first.

2. Middle Adolescence

Adolescents aged 14-17 years are included in the mid-adolescence phase. Changes occur in the body of girls. such as the pelvis, waist and buttocks begin to enlarge, menstruation begins regularly, increased sweat production, and the reproductive organs develop.

Meanwhile, in boys growth begins to run rapidly. The body becomes taller, the body weight increases, pimples appear, the muscles get bigger, the shoulders and chest get wider, the voice cracks, the penis gets bigger, the growth of cumin, sideburns, and so on.

At this time, the mindset of adolescents is based on logic, but not infrequently it is also driven by feelings or emotions. They also begin to be interested in having a romantic relationship, such as dating. Has a tendency to prefer or spend more time with friends. It is not uncommon for them to have disagreements and even fight with their parents because their emotions are not stable and they are sensitive.

3. Late Adolescence

Adolescents aged 18-24 years are included in late adolescence. Physical development begins to mature and has fully developed. Most of the changes occur within yourself. For example controlling emotions that are more stable, thinking about the consequences of actions taken, and planning for the future.

They have also understood their own desires as well as set their own plans without being affected by the will of others. Independence and emotional stability begin to be obtained by adolescents at the final stage towards adulthood.

Adolescent Development Tasks

Hurlock formulates the task of adolescent development as follows.

• Achieving new, more mature relationship patterns with peers of different sexes in accordance with the prevailing moral beliefs and ethics in society.
• Achieving social roles according to gender, in harmony with the social and cultural demands of the community.
• Accept the unity of the organs of the body/physical condition as male/female and use them effectively in accordance with their respective natures.
• Accept and achieve certain social behavior that is responsible in the midst of society.
• Gaining emotional freedom from parents and other adults and starting to be “myself.”
• Prepare yourself to achieve certain careers (positions and professions) in the field of economic life.
• Prepare to enter the world of marriage and family life.
• Obtain a set of values ​​and an ethical system as a guide to behavior and develop an ideology for the purposes of civic life.

Cognitive and Language Development in Adolescents

In Jean Piaget’s view, cognitive development has reached the peak stage of adolescence, namely the operational stage (11 years to adulthood). Piaget also formulated the characteristics of cognitive development in adolescence as follows.

• Able to reason abstractly in situations that offer several opportunities to do hypothetico -deductive reasoning and propositional thought .
• Understanding the logical requirements of propositional thinking, allows reasoning about premises (reasons) that contradict reality.
• Shows cognitive distortions, namely imaginary or imaginary listeners and personal fables , which will gradually decrease and disappear in adulthood.

Meanwhile, language development in adolescents has also increased. According to Santrock, the following is language development that occurs in adolescents.

• There is an increase in mastery of the use of complex words, with adolescents being better than children at analyzing the function a word plays in a sentence.
• Progress in understanding metaphor (comparison of meaning between two different things, using a word for a different meaning) and satire (using irony, ridicule, or joke to expose meanness or stupidity).
• Increased ability to understand complex literature.
• Better than children in organizing ideas to compose writing; combine sentences so they make sense; and organize the writing in the composition of the introduction, core, and conclusions.
• Speak in sentences that contain dialects, namely language variations that have distinctive vocabulary, grammar, or pronunciation.