Module 7: Brain Development During Adolescence

Question 1

amygdala

Answer 1

part of the limbic system in the brain, which is involved with emotions and emotional responses and is particularly active during puberty

Question 2

dopamine

Answer 2

a neurotransmitter in the brain that plays a role in pleasure and the reward system; increases in the limbic system and later in the prefrontal cortex during adolescence

Question 3

frontal lobes

Answer 3

the parts of the brain involved in impulse control, planning, and higher order thinking; still developing in adolescence

Question 4

limbic system

Answer 4

structures in the brain (including the amygdala) that involve processing emotional experience and social information and determining rewards and punishments; develops years before the prefrontal cortex

Question 5

melatonin

Answer 5

sleep hormone whose levels rise later at night and decrease later in the morning for teens, compared to children and adults

Question 6

myelination

Answer 6

insulation of neurons’ axons with fatty substance (myelin sheath) that helps speed up the processing of information; myelination starts to increase in the prefrontal cortex during adolescence

Question 7

prefrontal cortex

Answer 7

part of the frontal lobes, involved with decision making, cognitive control, and other higher order functions; prefrontal cortex develops further during adolescence

Question 8

serotonin

Answer 8

“calming chemical,” a neurotransmitter in the brain involved with the regulation of mood and behavior; serotonin levels increase in the limbic system during adolescence

Question 9

synaptic pruning

Answer 9

connections in the brain that are not used much are lost so that other connections can be strengthened; this pruning happens with prefrontal cortex connections in adolescence