The power of the adolescent mind

Abstract

Emotion is essential for learning, but brain evidence shows how not all emotional engagement is equivalent. New research by Mary Helen Immordino-Yang and the research team at the USC Center for Affective Neuroscience, Development, Learning, and Education finds that adolescents’ dispositions toward emotionally engaged “transcendent thinking” — their tendencies to deliberate on the abstract, systems-level, ethical and personal implications of the things they learn about and witness — are particularly powerful. Transcendent thinking leverages brain systems for executive functioning, internal reflection, and emotion, and predicts a cascade of beneficial brain and psychosocial effects into young adulthood. Teaching that spurs transcendent thinking could provide a powerful opportunity to support youths’ deep scholarly learning and social-emotional development in a coordinated way.