Running Head: PEPSI Screening 1

PEPSI Screening Project

Cynthia Marrufo

College of Southern Nevada

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Biography

The PEPSI screening project aims to understand adolescence and their development. For

this particular screening, the adolescent chosen is a Hispanic female student in 7th grade. She was

born in Las Vegas, Nevada in 2009 and is 12 years old, going on 13 in January. The student is

currently enrolled in a public middle school located in Las Vegas, where she enjoys participating

in classes such as choir, English, and photo design. Her reasoning for enjoying such classes is

due to her aspirations of becoming either a singer or writer in the future.

The subject is the youngest child in a large family consisting of two older sisters, an older

brother, her parents, a young niece, and a young nephew. However, she only lives with one of

her older sisters, her older brother, her mother, and her nephew in Las Vegas. She expresses her

distaste in having to share a room with her mother at 12 but enjoys her weekends where she gets

to stay with her father.

When not focused on school the model enjoys the wonders of technology, constantly

absorbed in her phone or the TV. On her phone she frequently can be seen reading stories,

looking up various urban legends for entertainment, researching random bits of history, or

playing games. When watching TV, she prefers to stick to YouTube, but can be found watching

shows such as The Flash or The Promised Neverland. A few of her other hobbies include writing

short stories, creating characters through her phone app, and listening to music.

Physical Development

The adolescent has blemished tan skin, straight dark brown hair, and brown eyes. She is

about five feet tall and weighs approximately 120 pounds. According to the BMI index provided

by the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), these measurements place her within
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the 85th percentile, classifying her as “overweight.” While this may be considered abnormal

physical development for a 12-year-old it is worth acknowledging varying attributes that

contribute to the teen’s weight. Some examples of these attributes are family genetics and

influence, dietary choices, and exercise habits (Castle, 2021). Given that the teen comes from a

family of heavier set people (a few of which do have weight related health problems), prefers to

stay indoors as opposed to partaking in physical activities, and has admitted to struggling with

dietary choices, these could explain her development.

However, another critical factor in physical development is puberty which most females

between ages 8-13 years old begin to go through. This can result in a variety of more physical

changes such as body hair, further weight gain, fat redistribution, growth spurts, acne, and

development of menstrual cycles (Allen & Miller, 2019). After appropriate questioning and

observation, it can be concluded that the teen is going through the stages of puberty, meaning

that she has been physically developing relatively normal.

Emotional Development

The website VeryWellMind discusses the Identity vs. Role Confusion stage of Erik

Erikson’s theory of psychosocial development. According to the website, “adolescents explore

their independence and develop a sense of self,” between the ages of 12 and 18. This is because

these ages are most commonly exposed to society and the challenges to one’s sense of self.

During this time, especially in early adolescence, it is common for teens to begin to show

empathy, handle feelings of rejection and anger, and for most females, go through the hormonal

emotional changes of puberty (Kid Central TN, 2018).

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The progeny displays mildly concerning emotional development in her behavior both at

school and at home. While she is building her sense of self and is unconcerned with feeling

rejected by societal norms, she lacks control when dealing with other negative feelings. She

quickly loses patience, becomes easily frustrated, and has the tendency to lash out at others when

feeling stressed. This also has caused mild tension within her family, which is a common

correlation as explained by the “Teen Conflict and Parent and Adolescent Well-Being,” journal

(Silva, Karol & Ford, 2020, p. 1606). While the cause of this emotional deficiency cannot be

contributed to a single thing, some factors that could be affecting her are neurodivergent

disorders, home life, or overall perceptions of her day-to-day life.

Philosophical Development

Regarding philosophical development in young adolescents, the most common area of

Kohlberg’s Moral Development they can be found in is stage three (Ellsworth, 1996, p. 1). This

is considered the “good boy-nice girl” stage where it is normal to conform to the majority’s

behaviors and often wonder what others think (Wong, 2000). In this stage, it is also common for

teens to begin questioning rules, develop personal values, and resolve conflicts (Kid Central TN,

2018).

After questioning and observing the participant, she displays mostly adequate

development in this area. She is not afraid to question rules that she feels are unfair nor state why

she thinks so. She has also begun to voice strong opinions on aspects of society and is able to

support such claims. While her conflict handling skills are struggling due to her lack of

emotional development, she still frequently attempts to handle situations in her social life as best

as she can with guidance from others. Yet, a more surprising development is her disinterest in
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what others think, which would fall outside the average teen’s view. She has no desire to

conform or choose the “morally correct” decision when asked to respond to philosophical

dilemmas. This could be a potential concern; however, it is much too early to determine whether

this could be an issue in the future.

Social Development

The social development stage is one that involves many characteristics such as: defining

of oneself, identifying with a peer group, and social learning (Kid Central TN, 2018). The Social

Learning Theory (SLT) is heavily based on the idea that the social system we are accepted into is

what influences our decisions the most by setting our expectations, providing observational

behaviors, and reinforcing our conclusions based off what we observe (ETR, 2021). The SLT

can coincide with identifying with a peer group, given that both social aspects involve outside

influence. Defining of oneself can be expressed through a plethora of outlets, for instance,

clothing, media, friends, and beliefs.

On the subject of social development, the partaker shows healthy development for the

most part. She has clearly defined her societal labels when referring to her feelings on her gender

and sexuality and displays full confidence in who she is. She often expresses herself comfortably

in clothing she chooses, excitedly shares her interests, and has a support system that she feels is

suitable. The only area that could peak an observer’s interest is her absence of a peer group.

Despite having acquaintances and the stray friend here and there, the teen does not share much

about her social life. This also provides the question if she could be possibly be more influenced

by online peers given that she is so enveloped in modern technology. Which could lead to

another trail of questions on if she is still focusing on her in-life reality, if she is being given
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unsupervised access to media, and whether these technology influences are positive or not

(Davis, 2017, p. 4).

Intellectual Development

According to the J’Anne Ellsworth PEPSI website, intellectual development in young

teens is classified by the ability to add dimension to their ideas, ability to apply logical thinking,

and the opportunity to develop virtuosity. This is also the period where students begin to become

aware of their particular learning style. The student, however, seems to be slightly below the

average teen in her development. While her grades reflect that she is of passing intelligence and

she is typically eager for new knowledge, there is no real growth beyond school.

The model does not show a desire to learn beyond the average intelligence that will

sustain her enough to pass school. Despite enjoying choir and having the opportunity to excel in

it, she does not practice outside of school. While she does exceptionally well in math, she does

not care to develop her logical skills further. Lastly, while she has shown her ability to add depth

to her thoughts, she avoids doing so a lot of the time, resulting in her undermining her

intelligence. She also has not begun to establish any sense of awareness towards her learning

style, although she has all the potential to do so.

A possible cause for this worth mentioning, however, is the school she attends in largely

based on standardized tests and makes a large part of the student’s grades based on these test

scores. This pressure could be a contributing factor in her being unmotivated to pursue her

education further, given that many students already do the bare minimum needed to graduate

(Cohn, 2002, p. 54). Though it has been stated that this area of development cannot be rushed, it

does draw concerns for the participant’s future development (Ellsworth, 1996, p. 2).
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Recommendations

After thoroughly surveying and questioning the teen, there are a few findings that should

be discussed further. Although physical development is relatively normal and consistent, there is

a small cause for concern because unhealthy lifestyle choices could be detrimental to physical

development in the future. The changes that should be taken are not harsh but implementing

more physical activity outside of school and setting better family habits would be very helpful.

Emotional development is a bigger concern, due to the adolescent’s lack of ability to handle

stress and frustration. Without proper development she could develop mental illness down the

line or potentially struggle with emotion management into adulthood, which would make life

very challenging. A possible solution could be to talk with the child and decide if she would like

to start working on coping mechanisms and communication, or even taking her to see a

professional.

Philosophical development seems to be very healthy and on the right path. She is

displaying the ability to formulate her own perceptions and justify them. She also has no want to

conform to society or worry about what society thinks, which can be a mostly positive thing

since she can be less susceptible to bullying or peer pressure. Social development also seems to

be headed down the right track. She is secure in her placement in society, has a support system

that she feels safe with, and has not given anyone reason to be concerned about her peers’

influence. Yet, the constant access to technology and the internet does raise a few concerns. The

unsupervised access could expose her to unsavory influences as well as things young teens are

not mature enough to be exposed to.

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Lastly, intellectual development is not necessarily a problem area, but it is an area that

should be further developed. The student’s lack of interest in intellectually growing or

participating in school is not an issue but should be talked about. Too many students harbor

animosity towards school because they lose interest and begin to think of it as a waste of time.

However, the education system should be trying to encourage students to want to learn and grow.

Without nurturing this area of development, many children will never reach their true potential.
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PEPSI Profile Chart

Student Development
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References

Allen, B., & Miller, K. (2019, June 4). Physical development in girls: what to expect during

puberty. HealthyChildren. Retrieved from https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-

stages/gradeschool/puberty/Pages/Physical-Development-Girls-What-to-Expect.aspx

Castle, J. (2021, July 9). The most common reasons a girl gains weight. The Nourished Child.

Retrieved from https://thenourishedchild.com/reasons-teen-gaining-weight/

CDC. (2021, March 17). About child & teen bmi. CDC. Retrieved from

https://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/assessing/bmi/childrens_bmi/about_childrens_bmi.ht

ml

Cherry, K. (2021, June 3). Identity vs. role confusion in psychosocial development.

VeryWellMind. Retrieved from https://www.verywellmind.com/identity-versus-

confusion-2795735

Cohn, A. W. (2002, June). Students and standardized tests. Administrative Office of the United

States Courts. Retrieved from

https://www.proquest.com/psychology/docview/213981921/fulltext/549D0E02031F4E73

PQ/12?accountid=27953

Davis, C. A. & The Chicago School of Professional Psychology. (2017). Social media

technologies’ influence on adolescent social/emotional development. ProQuest

Dissertations Publishing. Retrieved from

https://www.proquest.com/psychology/docview/1930669825/fulltextPDF/A41E908533E

44454PQ/5?accountid=27953
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Ellsworth, J. (1996). PEPSI: a screening and programming tool for understanding the

youth. Teaching Exceptional Children, 1–7. Retrieved from

https://csn.instructure.com/courses/1346889/discussion_topics/4025774

Ellsworth, J. & Northern Arizona University. (1998). PEPSI as a screening tool. ESE504.

Retrieved from https://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~jde7/ese504/class/pepsi/lesson2-1-1.html

ETR. (2021). Social learning theory’s major concepts. ReCAPP. Retrieved from

http://recapp.etr.org/recapp/index.cfm?fuseaction=pages.TheoriesDetail&PageID=383

Kid Central Tennessee. (2018). Social and emotional development: ages 11–13. Kid Central TN.

Retrieved from https://www.kidcentraltn.com/development/11-13-years/social-and-

emotional-development-ages-11-13.html

Silva, K., Ford, C. A., & Miller, V. A. (2020). Teen conflict and parent and adolescent well-

being: the moderating role of daily and person-level warmth. Journal of Youth and

Adolescence, 49(8), 1606–1616. Retrieved from

https://www.proquest.com/psychology/docview/2424342556/62F63F204E5146BFPQ/7?

accountid=27953

Wong, A. S. L. (2000, September). Kohlberg’s level two - conventional morality. Rules and

Reasoning. Retrieved from http://www.vtaide.com/blessing/Kohl2.html