Changes in the brain from adolescence to 20s

[Robopop]

I have been reading alot of material lately about adolescent brain development, and as it turns out, the brain goes through a pruning process of cutting off unused neural connections to make the brain more efficient. It starts from the back of the brain to the front, the very last area to mature is the pre-frontal cortex, the area of the brain that is associated with planning, forethought, and rational decision making, this is why many teenagers are poor decision makers and often act on impluse(especially around their peers).This process last from about the age of 12 to the mid 20s! It was once thought that cognitive development was finished around 17 or 18, but that ain't so. So while an 18 year old may be considered a legal adult they have definitely not reached cognitive maturity, which most people reach around 23, 24, or 25.

Also do any of you notice a change in people when they enter their mid 20s, do they start acting more mature? Does this tie in with the quarter life crisis? How do you think this ties in with personality, is personality finally set in stone in the mid 20s?

 

[Mole]

Dependence and Denial

Adolescents are emotionally and financially dependent on their parents because they are not sufficiently mature to be independent.

This is usually concealed from the adolescent who can't see they are not mature, even though objectively they are dependent financially and emotionally on their parents.

And not being mature, adolescents are subject to group think. Adolescents are unable to think for themselves so they take on whatever the group thinks.

Group think is exploited by gangs, cults, the military and advertising.

So adolescents are uniquely vulnerable, particularly as they are unable to see how vulnerable they are. And this is why they need to be looked after by their parents.

You can see all of this right here. MBTI is an American cult that exploits the vulnerability and gullibility of adolescents. But if we have the temerity to point out to the adolescents that they are naturally vulnerable and gullible and being exploited by the American cult of MBTI, they deny it.

 

[Lily flower]

There are definitely different stages of maturing, and I don't think it stops at 20 or 25. There is a huge difference between an 18 year old's maturity and a 25 year old's maturity, but of course, there is a big difference between a 25 year old and a 55 year old. I think the difference mainly comes in suffering and in realizing that life is full of difficulties and that all your dreams will probably not be realized. And then more maturity comes when you realize that it's OK if you don't achieve all your dreams and that you can find meaning in many different things in life. Of course, there are surely some immature 65 year olds, but time certainly brings a measure of maturity to any person who is reasonably self-aware.

 

[Moiety]

"t all your dreams will probably not be realized."

Thankfully a mature person would never tell that to an immature person.

 

[rav3n]

If this theory (have read about this too with age 25 being the generalised optimal number) is proved to be factual, it almost demands that we greatly challenge children, adolescents and young adults so they retain as many open neural connections as possible.

It does give the term "narrow-minded" one more level of meaning.

 

[kyuuei]

The case of myself exclusively, I definitely matured a lot in my 20s. Leaps and bounds. I discovered a lot.. about myself, and the world around me. I think this is a mixture of biological and experiences.

I told my baby sister back when she was 15 and I caught her drinking a small shot of tequila.. "It's not that I particularly care if you're drinking or not. I don't find anything morally wrong with it. But... Your brain doesn't develop until you're in your 20s. While a drink here and there won't hurt you until then, I'd rather you refrain from it as much as possible to give your body the best shot at developing correctly." .. I think she respected that, at least.

 

[sleepy]

This makes sense. Explains why army enlisting occurs at 18 years old.

 

[Snuggletron]

This makes sense. Explains why army enlisting occurs at 18 years old.

lol

 

[wildcat]

You cannot learn from experience before you have had it.

 

[FDG]

I don't feel like I've changed at all since I was 13.

 

[Thalassa]

I don't feel like I've changed at all since I was 13.

that would be impossible unless you have brain damage

 

[FDG]

that would be impossible unless you have brain damage

Well I said I don't feel like I have, but perhaps an external observer would say that I did. Eventually, it might also mean that I was extremely mature at 13, while now I'm a bit childish

 

[Moiety]

I don't feel like I've changed at all since I was 13.

I kind of relate. The only difference is that, I've had more time to confirm some of my thoughts on human existence since then. Never being wrong is such a curse.

 

[Queen Kat]

According to old friends from when I was a child I turned very negative. Does this brain shrinking thing cause negativity?

 

[Randomnity]

I feel like that's about right. I feel like I matured a TON from 18-20 or so (coinciding with starting university/first big relationship, so it might be those more than the age), then it slowed down, but I do feel somewhat "more mature" than when I was 20....well ok sometimes. I'm not sure my actual brain feels different from my 20-year old one though, I've just had more experiences put into my memory bank that affect how I think.

Of course, that might just mean that I'm still not mature yet.

 

[FDG]

I kind of relate. The only difference is that, I've had more time to confirm some of my thoughts on human existence since then. Never being wrong is such a curse.

lol. yeah. *mutual wanking*

 

[Totenkindly]

"t all your dreams will probably not be realized."
Thankfully a mature person would never tell that to an immature person.

There are some things that are better in the long run for people to find out on their own. It's the process and the chasing after dreams that helps one grow; often shooting someone down just makes them scared to try anything.

I think people are all different, and some mature faster than others... but statistically we can see the impact of teenage boys not having a "uh, are you SURE you want to do that?" mental warning flag. Some of it's also associated with lack of life experience.

If this theory (have read about this too with age 25 being the generalised optimal number) is proved to be factual, it almost demands that we greatly challenge children, adolescents and young adults so they retain as many open neural connections as possible.

Which seems to be true. Otherwise people get locked in. Flexibility in childhood and adolescence seems to play out in adulthood.

 

[Totenkindly]

"t all your dreams will probably not be realized."
Thankfully a mature person would never tell that to an immature person.

There are some things that are better in the long run for people to find out on their own. It's the process and the chasing after dreams that helps one grow; often shooting someone down just makes them scared to try anything.

I think people are all different, and some mature faster than others... but statistically we can see the impact of teenage boys not having a "uh, are you SURE you want to do that?" mental warning flag. Some of it's also associated with lack of life experience.

If this theory (have read about this too with age 25 being the generalised optimal number) is proved to be factual, it almost demands that we greatly challenge children, adolescents and young adults so they retain as many open neural connections as possible.

Which seems to be true. Otherwise people get locked in. Flexibility in childhood and adolescence seems to play out in adulthood.

 

[Mole]

According to old friends from when I was a child I turned very negative. Does this brain shrinking thing cause negativity?

Sometimes we turn negative in response to a negative environment.

 

[Robopop]

One other strange thing I've read and noticed is that in certain disciplines(such as science, music, sports), alot of people peak in their mid twenties, like for musicians off the top of my head - Michael Jackson age 24 when he made Thriller, Brian Wilson was 24 when he made Pet Sounds, The Beatles were all in the mid twenties when they made Sgt. Pepper, Kurt Cobian was 24 when Smells Like Teen Spirit came out. It is also said that hockey players come into their own, hit their peak at age 24/25, also most of the theoretical physicist were in their mid twenties when they made their major breakthroughs(Albert Einstien published the special theory of relativity at 26 for example).