MANICALAND STATE UNIVERSITY OF APPLIED SCIENCES

FULL NAME KAPUNZANGONA DAVID

REG NUMBER M229PC

LEVEL 2.1

PROGRAMME BACHELOR OF SCIENCE HONOURS DEGREE IN

PSYCHOLOGY

COURSE ADOLESCENCE AND ADULTHOOD

LECTURER MS MUTONGORENI

MODULE CODE SSPS 215

ASSIGNMENT 3

QUESTION Briefly describe several information processing skills that reach adult
levels during adolescence.
Adolescence is time of rapid cognitive development. Biological changes in the brain structure
and connectivity in the brain interact with increased experience, knowledge and changing
social demands to produce rapid cognitive growth. The changes generally begins at puberty
and some skills continue to develop as the adolescent ages. Information processing skills
refers to a series of steps that explain how the brain acquire, process, and stores information.
Information processing states that the brain is very similar to a computer in the way it process
information processing model can be used by psychologists to help understand the thoughts
and behaviors of people. During adolescence several information processing skills reach adult
level. These information processing skills that reach adult are, attention, memory, processing
speed, metacognition and organizational thinking. The several information processing skills
that reach adult to be discussed in further detail as the essay below unfolds.

To comments with, one of the information processing skills that reach adult level during
adolescence is memory. Memory refers to a set of processes used to encode, store and
retrieve information over different periods of time. Encoding involves the input of
information into the memory system, storage refers to the retention of encoded information
and retrieval or getting the information out of memory and back into awareness. The
improvements in memory are seen in the working memory and the long-term memory. Short
term memory (STM) also called working memory is a temporal storage system that processes
incoming sensory memory. Blakemore (2006) suggests that working memory is a bridge
between information taken in through sensory memory and the permanent storage of
information in long-term memory. Information that is not moved from the short-term
memory to long-term memory is easily forgotten.

Short-term memory can hold information for a short period of time without rehearsal. For a
typical adolescent or adult, storage lasts about 20-30 seconds. Older children and adults use
mental strategies to aid their memory performance. For instance, through rehearsal maybe
used to commit information to memory whilst young children often do not rehearsal unless
reminded to do so. More so, memory improvements are also seen in long-term memory
(LTM). Long –term memory is the continuous storage of information. The storage capacity
of LTM has no real limits unlike short-term memory. Diamond (2013) opines that long-term
memory encompasses all the things and events that happened days and years ago which an
adolescent or adult can still remember. For instance, the events that happened in Zimbabwe
when President Robert G. Mugabe was removed from power. Henceforth, one of the
information processing skills that reach adult level during adolescence is memory.

Another information processing skill that reach adult levels during adolescence is attention.
Adolescents become better at focusing on relevant information while ignoring distractions.
This information processing skill is very essential for academic success as it allows
adolescents to stay focused during lectures time, discussions in the classroom or with friends
when preparing for the examinations. The skills improvements are seen in selective attention
and divided attention Selective attention refers to the process by which an individual focuses
on one stimulus while turning out another. There is a sharp improvement in selective
attention from age six into adolescence (Steinberg, 2014). The ability with selective attention
tasks improves through childhood and into adulthood. The development of this ability is
influenced by the child’s temperament, the complexity of the stimulus or task. Divided
attention refers to how people can multitask, performing two or more tasks simultaneously
and how an individual can alternate attention between two or more tasks. For example,
walking and talking to a friend at the same time is multitasking, where trying to text while
driving requires an individual to alternate attention between two tasks quickly. Therefore,
attention is also one of the information processing skills that reach adult during adolescents.

Furthermore, processing speed is also another information processing skill that reach adult
during adolescent. During adolescents, the human brain undergoes important changes that
effect cognitive abilities, including processing speed. Processing speed refers to the ability to
perform simple cognitive tasks quickly. It is a crucial aspect of cognitive functioning bas it
affects performance in various factors such as academic achievements and daily activities.
Blakemore (2006) opines that the processing speed reaches adult level during adolescents
specifically between the age of 12 and 16. During this period there are various changes in the
brains white matter which supports the efficient transmission of neural signals between
different brain regions. As result, adolescents demonstrate faster and more efficient neural
processing than children. There is individual difference in processing speed which exist
among adolescents, some reach adult level processing speed earlier or later than others due to
various factors such as genes inherited from parents and the environment in which one lives.
Therefore, processing speed is one another information processing skill that reaches adult
level during adolescence due to significant changes in the brain.

In contrast, metacognition is also another information processing skill that reaches adult level
during adolescence. Metacognition refers to the ability to understand one's own thought
processes and apply this understanding to improve learning and problem-solving skills.
During adolescence, individuals experience significant cognitive development, including the
development of metacognitive abilities (Piaget and Inhelder, 1958). This period is
characterized by an increased ability to think abstractly and reason logically, which allows
adolescents to reflect on their own thinking and monitor their own learning. More so,
metacognitive strategies which include planning, monitoring and evaluating one’s own
learning can be taught and learned during adolescence which leads to improved academic
performance. Factors such as stress and anxiety can hinder the development of metacognition
during adolescence. By understanding how metacognitive abilities develop during this period,
educators can better support students in their learning and help them develop effective
learning strategies. Therefore, metacognition is another information processing skill that
reach adult level during adolescence.

Organizational thinking is also another information processing skill that reaches adult level
during adolescents. This refers to the cognitive ability to understand complete systems, see
the relationship between parts of a system and think abstractly bout how those parts work
together. This type of thinking is important for success in many areas of including academics
and personal relationships. Adolescents reach the formal operational stage round ages 12 or
13, where there are able to think abstractly and logically bout hypothetical situations
(Schraw, 1995). This stage allows for more advanced organizational thinking. Experience
plays a role in the development of organizational thinking during adolescence, for example,
involvement in part time jobs can improve opportunities for adolescents to develop skills
related to planning, time management and decision making. More so, interaction with peers
and adults can also influence the development of organizational thinking. Adolescence who
have positive relationships with supportive adults have effective organizational strategies.
Henceforth, organizational thinking during adolescents is also another information processing
skill that reaches adult level.
Conclusively, there are several information processing skills that reach adult level during
adolescence. These several information skills are attention, memory, processing speed,
metacognition and organizational thinking. Information processing model can be used by
psychologists to help understand the thoughts and behaviors of people.
 References

Blakemore, S.J. (2006). Development of the adolescent brain: Implication for executive
function and social cognition. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 47(3),
296-312.

Diamond, A. (2013). Executive functions. Annual Review of Psychology, 64, 135-168.

Piaget, J., & Inhelder, B. (1958). The growth of logical thinking from childhood to
adolescence. Basic Books.

Schraw, G. (1995). Metacognition theories. Educational Biology Review, 7(4), 351-371.

Steinberg, L. (2014). Age of opportunity: Lessons from the new science of adolescence.
University press.