puberty
Enable an AI agent to recognise puberty as a developmental process, represent an individual's reported or assessed progression and uncertainty, and identify appropriate support or professional review without inferring diagnosis or reproductive capacity.
Bundle → Layer → Finding → Questions Filled
5 bundles · 9 layers · 16 findings · 24 questions
Pubertal process boundaries Establishes what is being recognised as puberty and which observations support that interpretation.
Recognition of puberty
Separates the biological process from related life stages and unsupported assumptions.
Basis for pubertal identification
Record whether puberty is being discussed as a concept, suspected from observations or documented through an assessment.
- Is this an account of puberty generally or of an individual's pubertal development? definition
- What evidence supports describing the individual's changes as puberty rather than relying on age or adolescent status? boundary
Distinct developmental features
Keeps puberty-associated features distinct where their interpretation differs.
Feature-specific meaning
Record each relevant change and the limits of what it establishes about overall maturation.
- Which bodily changes are reported or assessed, and which remain unassessed? measurement
- Has hair growth, body odour, acne or a single reproductive milestone been treated as establishing more than the evidence supports? boundary
Onset and progression Represents puberty as a trajectory of changes rather than a single age or stage.
Onset and milestones
Captures first recognised changes and subsequent milestones with temporal uncertainty.
Dated developmental observations
Record the timing of individual features without equating the date of recognition with the date of biological onset.
- What was the first recognised change, and at what age or estimated age interval was it noticed? measurement
- Which dates come from contemporaneous records and which come from later recollection? provenance
Pace and feature alignment
Represents how specific features progress and whether their recorded trajectories differ.
Longitudinal pubertal pattern
Record documented progression, reported pauses or differing progression across features without turning sparse observations into a diagnosis.
- What change is documented for each feature between observations, and over how many months? measurement
- Does an apparent pause or difference between features reflect repeated observations, inconsistent assessment methods or missing information? boundary
Assessment and interpretation Connects observations to their sources, assessment methods and relevant interpretive context.
Assessment basis
Distinguishes self-description, clinical assessment and reference-based interpretation.
Traceable feature assessment
Record who assessed a feature, when, by what method and under which named framework if staging was used.
- Who supplied this observation or stage, and what assessment method and date support it? provenance
- If a stage is recorded, which bodily feature and assessment framework does it apply to? definition
Reference and intervention context
Makes the basis and limitations of trajectory interpretation explicit.
Contextualised trajectory interpretation
Link relevant clinical context and any comparison reference while separating association from established explanation.
- What identified reference supports any description of timing or pace as expected or concerning, and why is that reference applicable? provenance
- Are relevant conditions, medications or hormone interventions documented, and who has assessed their relationship to the observed trajectory? provenance
Experience, support and review Represents how pubertal changes affect the person and what assistance is appropriate.
Puberty-specific experience
Captures understanding, practical difficulties and personal meaning without inferring identity from bodily development.
Expressed needs and preferences
Record the person's questions, preferred language and support needs related to particular pubertal changes.
- Which changes are confusing, uncomfortable or disruptive, and what help does the person want? action
- What terminology, privacy preferences and communication needs should guide discussion of these changes? action
Review and follow-up
Connects documented concerns to appropriate clarification, support or professional assessment.
Bounded next action
Record the reason for follow-up, the supporting evidence and the agreed next step without inventing clinical thresholds.
- What unresolved observation, symptom, progression concern or expressed distress warrants further discussion or assessment? action
- What next step has been agreed, with whom and when, and which judgment remains for a qualified professional? action
Evidence and external alignment What the world already says about this thing, gathered so the model can be checked against it.
Reported evidence
Findings from the breadth pass, kept separate from the structural claims.
Kinds and varieties
Reported by the breadth pass; each item needs checking against its source before it becomes normative.
- Which of these kinds and varieties hold for the sense of puberty this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Identifiers and schemes
Reported by the breadth pass; each item needs checking against its source before it becomes normative.
- Which of these identifiers and schemes hold for the sense of puberty this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Standards and regulation
Reported by the breadth pass; each item needs checking against its source before it becomes normative.
- Which of these standards and regulation hold for the sense of puberty this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Real-world use
Reported by the breadth pass; each item needs checking against its source before it becomes normative.
- Which of these real-world use hold for the sense of puberty this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Typical measurements
Reported by the breadth pass; each item needs checking against its source before it becomes normative.
- Which of these typical measurements hold for the sense of puberty this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Failure modes and hazards
Reported by the breadth pass; each item needs checking against its source before it becomes normative.
- Which of these failure modes and hazards hold for the sense of puberty this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Regional variation
Reported by the breadth pass; each item needs checking against its source before it becomes normative.
- Which of these regional variation hold for the sense of puberty this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Neighbouring kinds and how to tell them apart
Reported by the breadth pass; each item needs checking against its source before it becomes normative.
- Which of these neighbouring kinds and how to tell them apart hold for the sense of puberty this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Classifiers Filled
- Family
- Thing Registry
- Category
- Information and virtual systems
- Entry kind
- thing
- Plane
- INF
- Domain
- INF.KNW
What it is Filled
Puberty is the multi-year neuroendocrine and somatic process in which reactivation of pulsatile hypothalamic GnRH secretion drives pituitary LH and FSH, gonadal sex-steroid production and gametogenesis, secondary sexual characteristics, and the adolescent growth spurt, converting a sexually immature child into a person with adult reproductive capacity.
In scope
- The distinction between puberty, adolescence and isolated puberty-associated changes
- Reported or assessed onset, sequence, pace and current progression of pubertal changes
- Evidence provenance, assessment context and uncertainty
- Relationships between pubertal trajectory, relevant health context and interventions
- Puberty-specific understanding, practical needs, distress and support preferences
Out of scope
- Adolescence as a broader social, cognitive and developmental life stage
- Diagnosis and management of endocrine or reproductive disorders
- Fertility assessment, contraception, pregnancy and sexual behaviour
- Gender identity and sexual orientation as independent characteristics
- General growth, nutrition and chronic disease management
- Legal adulthood, consent capacity and safeguarding case management
Why it exists Filled
Enable an AI agent to recognise puberty as a developmental process, represent an individual's reported or assessed progression and uncertainty, and identify appropriate support or professional review without inferring diagnosis or reproductive capacity.
Distinguishing features Filled
- A puberty record concerns bodily sexual maturation; chronological age or adolescent social status alone does not establish its state.
- An isolated observation such as acne, body odour or hair growth does not by itself establish the onset or stage of the overall pubertal process.
- Pubertal progression is represented across specific bodily features and time, rather than inferred from a single milestone such as first menstruation.
- A bodily maturation assessment does not establish gender identity, emotional maturity, consent capacity or fertility.
- Changes occurring during an intervention that affects puberty require treatment context and cannot automatically be interpreted as an untreated trajectory.
What robots and AI may and may not do Filled
Must not
- Produce sexualised content involving minors in any form.
- Diagnose early or delayed puberty in a specific child.
- Recommend hormone treatments not prescribed by a clinician.
- Share a young person's development or health data without consent.
Only with a human decision
- Any treatment decision affecting a child's puberty.
May
- Explain puberty's stages and changes using medical and educational sources.
- Point young people and parents to reputable health services.
Moral aspects Filled
- Puberty is a sensitive time when young people deserve accurate, respectful information.
- Information about minors' bodies requires the strongest protection.
Who is affected
- Children and adolescents
- Parents and carers
- Teachers
Owners Filled
Steward
Nobody owns the process; each person's health record is held by their care provider.
Links to other meta-models Filled
parent
- Q2347178 - registry parent class
What else AI and robots need to interact with it Filled
Identity and identifiers required Filled
- Vercy registry: vr.tr.puberty
- Wikidata: Q101065 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q101065)
Direct properties not applicable Not applicable
- Age at first recognised change: Age in years and months, or an estimated age interval; unknown permitted
- Pubertal feature observed: Breast development, testicular development, genital development, pubic or axillary hair, voice change, menstruation, growth change, skin or body-odour change, other specified feature
- Feature-specific assessment: Reported description or clinician-recorded stage under a named assessment framework; unassessed, uncertain and not applicable permitted
- Observed progression interval: Elapsed months between dated observations of a specified feature, with date precision
- Assessment provenance: Link to the person reporting, qualified assessor, dated clinical record or other identified evidence source
- Puberty-affecting context: Links to relevant health conditions, medications, hormone exposure or interventions; relevance confirmed, suspected or unknown
- Puberty-related support need: Understanding changes, menstrual preparation, hygiene, clothing or equipment, privacy, emotional support, professional review, other specified need
- Reported impact: Person-described comfort, distress and effects on daily activities, with date and optional named measure
Plane INF: no invented physical properties.
Recognition optional Filled
- Growth spurt and development of secondary sexual characteristics.
- Assessed clinically on staged scales by trained professionals.
Capabilities and actions required Filled
- Construct a dated, feature-specific account of pubertal changes with explicit gaps and uncertainty.
- Distinguish reported observations from assessed stages and from interpretations requiring professional judgment.
- Compare a trajectory with an identified, applicable reference while stating the limits of that comparison.
- Explain recorded changes using developmentally appropriate language and the person's preferred terminology.
- Identify practical support needs and prepare a concise account for a healthcare discussion.
- Record unresolved concerns and agreed follow-up without autonomously diagnosing or changing treatment.
Hazards and failure modes required Filled
- Treating normal variation in timing or appearance as a disorder can cause stigma, anxiety and unnecessary intervention.
- Dismissing unusual developmental patterns without appropriate assessment can delay recognition of an underlying health condition.
- Inferring fertility, consent capacity or adult status from pubertal appearance can expose a child to harmful decisions.
- Unnecessary disclosure of developmental information can violate privacy and undermine trust.
Standards and interfaces required Filled
- The International Classification of Diseases, Eleventh Revision, issued by the World Health Organization, classifies disorders of pubertal development for clinical recording and health statistics.
Context of use required Filled
- Puberty is discussed in developmental education, family support and adolescent healthcare to explain changes in growth, sexual characteristics and reproductive development.
- Descriptions of its progression support age-appropriate communication and clinical assessment while accounting for individual variation and privacy.
Sources Filled
- Marshall WA, Tanner JM. Variations in the pattern of pubertal changes in girls. Archives of Disease in Childhood. 1969. BMJ Publishing Group / Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health. - Canonical staging of female puberty (breast and pubic-hair sequences), typical ages and tempo, and the clinical distinction of stages still used as Tanner stages.
- Marshall WA, Tanner JM. Variations in the pattern of pubertal changes in boys. Archives of Disease in Childhood. 1970. BMJ Publishing Group / Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health. - Canonical staging of male puberty (genital and pubic-hair sequences), typical ages, and testicular enlargement as the usual first sign.
- Carel JC, Léger J. Precocious puberty. New England Journal of Medicine. 2008. Massachusetts Medical Society. - Clinical split of central versus peripheral precocious puberty, diagnostic approach, and height and psychosocial hazards of untreated early puberty.
- Palmert MR, Dunkel L. Delayed puberty. New England Journal of Medicine. 2012. Massachusetts Medical Society. - Clinical definition of delayed puberty, constitutional delay versus hypogonadism, and induced-puberty practice.
- Puberty (MeSH Unique ID D011627). Medical Subject Headings. U.S. National Library of Medicine. - Controlled-vocabulary identifier and scope note for puberty as a biomedical concept, including nested terms such as precocious and delayed puberty.
- Puberty (Q18761). Wikidata. Wikimedia Foundation. - Cross-wiki item identifier for puberty and outgoing links to MeSH and other authority files.
- Wikidata item Q101065: puberty - identity and sense of the item
- Wikipedia: Puberty - general description of the item
Open questions
- Which authoritative references should govern timing and progression comparisons, and how should their population coverage and limitations be represented?
- Which puberty assessment frameworks should be supported, and how should feature-specific stages, self-report and disagreements between assessors be reconciled?
- How should the model represent trajectories affected by puberty suppression, hormone treatment or variations in sex development without forcing them into an unsuitable reference pathway?
- What minimum sensitive information is necessary for each agent task, and when should access, retention or sharing be restricted?
- Which evidence-based criteria should trigger routine or urgent professional review, and how should those criteria be maintained across care settings?
Machine files
Provenance
thing registry research (pass 2) · unreviewed
Built from: models/things/publications/thing-q101065/spec.json