The neurotransmitter changes occurring during adolescence are in synchrony with the anatomical changes seen in the prefrontal cortex and other brain regions during this stage, as well as maturation of cognition and behavior and the emerging increased risk for psychopathology (Paus et al. 2008). Changes in dopamine and reward circuitry are critical to assigning value and reinforcing behaviors, such as social interaction, food consumption, romantic behaviors, novelty seeking, and alcohol and other drug intake (Spear 2009), while ongoing refinement of inhibitory neurotransmission has broad implications for information processing and modulation of impulses.
