Testing the adolescent social reorientation model using hierarchical modeling with parcellated fMRI data

Description: Adolescence is characterized as a period when social relationships and experiences shift toward peers. The social reorientation model of adolescence posits this shift is driven by neurobiological changes that increase the salience of status-related social information. We focused on two phenomena that are highly salient and dynamic during adolescence—social status and self-perception—and tested this hypothesis by examining longitudinal changes in neural responses during a self/other evaluation task. Using hierarchical growth curve modeling with parcellated whole-brain data, we found weak evidence for this hypothesis. Social brain regions showed increased responsivity across adolescence, but this trajectory wasn’t unique to status-related social information. Brain regions associated with self-focused cognition showed heightened responses during self-evaluation in the transition to mid-adolescence, especially for status-related social information. Together, these results qualify existing models of adolescent social reorientation and highlight the multifaceted changes in self and social development during adolescence. Related article: Cosme, D., Flournoy, J. C., Livingston, J. L., Lieberman, M. D., Dapretto, M., Pfeifer, J. H. (Preprint) Testing the adolescent social reorientation model using hierarchical growth curve modeling with parcellated fMRI data. https://psyarxiv.com/8eyf5/