Pubertal maturation and cognitive maturity in adolescents.

To determine the relationship between puberty and cognitive development, 135 students, ages 11 through 19 years, were studied. The participants were 73% white, 55% female, and of predominantly middle-class backgrounds with a mean Hollingshead score of 37.1 +/- 16.3. Measures of general intelligence (IQ), cognitive complexity (conceptual level), and cognitive style (perceptual field dependence-independence) were administered. Students rated their own level of sexual maturity (Tanner stage). Mean Tanner stage of 4.0 +/- 0.9 was consistent with the mean age of 14.2 +/- 2.2 years. General intelligence was average (105 +/- 18.2). Most did not demonstrate the use of mature cognitive processes, as reflected in low conceptual level scores (1.19 +/- 0.5) and a more field-dependent cognitive style (7.9 +/- 4.9). Older adolescents (r = 0.377; p less than 0.001), females (r = 0.217; p less than 0.005), and those with a higher IQ (r = 0.329; p less than 0.001) were cognitively more complex. Using an analysis of covariance to control for colinearity of variables, differences in conceptual level and cognitive style as functions of levels of sexual maturity were compared. Once the statistically significant colinear effects of age, gender, and IQ (p less than 0.0001) were removed, no statistical contribution was left attributable to the level of sexual maturity. In other words, when the effects of age were controlled, more advanced Tanner stage was not a predictor of more mature cognitive processes. Physical growth and development during puberty do not appear to affect cognitive development.