TY - JOUR T1 - The evolutionary basis of risky adolescent behavior: implications for science, policy, and practice JF - Dev Psychol Y1 - 2012 A1 - Ellis, B. J. A1 - Del Giudice, M. A1 - Dishion, T. J. A1 - Figueredo, A. J. A1 - Gray, P. A1 - Griskevicius, V. A1 - Hawley, P. H. A1 - Jacobs, W. J. A1 - James, J. A1 - Volk, A. A. A1 - Wilson, D. S. KW - *Biological Evolution KW - *Environment KW - *Models, Psychological KW - *Risk-Taking KW - Adaptation, Physiological KW - Adaptation, Psychological KW - Adolescent KW - Adolescent Behavior/*psychology KW - Behavioral Symptoms/psychology/therapy KW - DNA-Cytosine Methylases KW - Humans KW - Motivation KW - policy KW - Sex Characteristics AB - This article proposes an evolutionary model of risky behavior in adolescence and contrasts it with the prevailing developmental psychopathology model. The evolutionary model contends that understanding the evolutionary functions of adolescence is critical to explaining why adolescents engage in risky behavior and that successful intervention depends on working with, instead of against, adolescent goals and motivations. The current article articulates 5 key evolutionary insights into risky adolescent behavior: (a) The adolescent transition is an inflection point in development of social status and reproductive trajectories; (b) interventions need to address the adaptive functions of risky and aggressive behaviors like bullying; (c) risky adolescent behavior adaptively calibrates over development to match both harsh and unpredictable environmental conditions; (d) understanding evolved sex differences is critical for understanding the psychology of risky behavior; and (e) mismatches between current and past environments can dysregulate adolescent behavior, as demonstrated by age-segregated social groupings. The evolutionary model has broad implications for designing interventions for high-risk youth and suggests new directions for research that have not been forthcoming from other perspectives. VL - 48 SN - 1939-0599 (Electronic)
0012-1649 (Linking) N1 - Ellis, Bruce J
Del Giudice, Marco
Dishion, Thomas J
Figueredo, Aurelio Jose
Gray, Peter
Griskevicius, Vladas
Hawley, Patricia H
Jacobs, W Jake
James, Jenee
Volk, Anthony A
Wilson, David Sloan
eng
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
2011/11/30 06:00
Dev Psychol. 2012 May;48(3):598-623. doi: 10.1037/a0026220. Epub 2011 Nov 28. JO - Dev Psychol ER -