M. Bolognini et al., ASSESSING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN AGE AT PUBERTY AND MENTAL-HEALTH IN EARLY ADOLESCENCE - A LONGITUDINAL-STUDY (1989-1991), Revue d'epidemiologie et de sante publique, 41(4), 1993, pp. 337-345
The transition from childhood to adolescence is widely believed to be
a stressful period in which the child faces multiple changes: physical
changes, school choices, development of new social roles, and changes
in the relation with his or her parents and friends. We investigated
the effects of the timing of puberty on mental health, studied in a po
pulation of 219 young adolescents who were followed during three years
(mean age at the beginning of the study was 12.5 years). The changes
in the perception of the individual's body associated with puberty dep
ended on the child's gender. Significant events during puberty had a n
egative effect on mental health. Although puberty remains a critical p
eriod of temporary unstable and fragile transition, most of the young
adolescents coped relatively well with the physiological, psychologica
l and social changes they faced.