A dynamic systems perspective on social cognition, problematic behaviour, and intervention in adolescence

In this article we discussed a dynamic systems view on social behaviour in adolescence. Social behaviour is defined as a self-organizing attractor landscape, based on a network of proximal (i.e., direct) causes. In some cases, social development is disturbed, leading to problematic behaviour in adolescence. The attractor landscape requires change and this change is achieved by therapy and intervention. Therapy and intervention are attempts to control complex, self-organizing systems, i.e., networks of proximal causes. We have noted that successful therapies and interventions do exactly that: change the network of proximal causes, within the rules and confinements of the contexts in which adolescent social behaviour occurs. Understanding the mechanism of such changes requires a different approach to studying and evaluating therapy and intervention, namely a focus on the various dynamics of individual trajectories.