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I've often heard the stat "the brain does not fully develop until 25" bandied around like it's some sort of hard fact, but I'm skeptical of it. I think this is another wives' tale like the "only use 10 percent of your brain" thing. The brain is always developing and changing until you die, you can't pick some random cutoff. It's also culturally relative, in China you're considered an adult at 13 for example. It's only in the US and maybe to a lesser extent other Western countries where you have the "kidult" phenomenon of 25, 27, 32 year olds still living with their mommies and even then this is more of a middle class luxury.
I'll be 25 in a couple months and I feel fully adult and have for a few years now. I'm not some immature brat who parties every single night and has no ambition or goals. I think mentally I'm much more like a 35 year old than a 14 year old and I sort of find the idea that people who are 24, their mid-20s, are adolescents sort of offensive. I also think the idea that 25 year olds have "maxed out" their potential to grow is possibly even more offensive.
Does anyone really believe that a 27 year old is more like a 70 year old than like a 22 year old psychologically? Because if the "brain stops developing at 25" myth is true that would indeed be the case.
The brain doesn't stop developing as long as you stimulate it. But what people mean by the brain isn't fully adult until 25 probably has something to do with the transformation from childhood to adulthood, growth of certain brain centers and hormonal stabilization, and that kind of thing.
This topic is probably more appropriate to the Psychology forum.
I have used this argument as a reason not to have legalized drug use until a later age, and keeping the drinking age, legally, where it is today.
18 year olds can make adult decisions, this is not my point. The brain can be adversely affected on long term development which can stunt human potential until age 25. Studies show that, marijuana for instance, can effect the brain adversely before age 25, but beyond that has little effect.
To relate this to another human body function, bones. You can grow bones that get you around strong. However a low calcium diet could lead to complications later in life, where if you exercised and ate properly while younger could give you less bone issues later.
Or diabetes. If you eat nothing but sugar while younger, you may live fine. You are at greater risk of contracting diabetes later in life.
So 18 to 24 year olds are adults. However, their body is still fully forming. My 10 year old is capable of making adult decisions, but he shouldn't be drinking beer.
They used to be. WWII tanks, ships and bombers were operated by 20-24 year olds. Women had babies and 18 and took care of them, too. After WWII, people started having extended childhoods: staying in school longer, starting work later, being taken care of by their parents longer, not being responsible until later in life. I've heard it referred to as the infantalization of America.
They used to be. WWII tanks, ships and bombers were operated by 20-24 year olds. Women had babies and 18 and took care of them, too. After WWII, people started having extended childhoods: staying in school longer, starting work later, being taken care of by their parents longer, not being responsible until later in life. I've heard it referred to as the infantalization of America.
Actually I know several who were in WWII who were 15 and 16.
These were still boys considered by todays standard. Put a 25 year old or a 18 year old in a boat aimed towards the shores of Normandy, no one knew what they were in for. Age had no bearing on it.
I have used this argument as a reason not to have legalized drug use until a later age, and keeping the drinking age, legally, where it is today.
18 year olds can make adult decisions, this is not my point. The brain can be adversely affected on long term development which can stunt human potential until age 25. Studies show that, marijuana for instance, can effect the brain adversely before age 25, but beyond that has little effect.
To relate this to another human body function, bones. You can grow bones that get you around strong. However a low calcium diet could lead to complications later in life, where if you exercised and ate properly while younger could give you less bone issues later.
Or diabetes. If you eat nothing but sugar while younger, you may live fine. You are at greater risk of contracting diabetes later in life.
So 18 to 24 year olds are adults. However, their body is still fully forming. My 10 year old is capable of making adult decisions, but he shouldn't be drinking beer.
So do you think mentally a 30 year old is more like a 65 year old than like a 22 year old?
I think 18-25 year old maybe had to take on more adult responsibilities in the past, but that doesn't mean they were quite fully formed adults yet. I do think that something tends to "click" with people's brains once they hit 25 or so.
They used to be. WWII tanks, ships and bombers were operated by 20-24 year olds. Women had babies and 18 and took care of them, too. After WWII, people started having extended childhoods: staying in school longer, starting work later, being taken care of by their parents longer, not being responsible until later in life. I've heard it referred to as the infantalization of America.
I agree To be fair we still have 18 year olds in our military charging out to battle. It is how they are raised and not treating them like children. My son was on his own since he was 19.
So do you think mentally a 30 year old is more like a 65 year old than like a 22 year old?
Its not mental ability or acting like an adult that is at question. There are 18 year olds who act far more like an adult from my thinking then several 50 and 60 yr olds that I know.
What is at question is the actual physical brain. The physical brain is not fully developed until age 25 roughly. Research study after research study has proven this point. The brain has not reached its full growth pattern until age 25. This begs the question, is the mental ability of the person tied to their brain, or what they have learned and what the society they grow in teaches them?
There are a considerable amount of very dumb, smart people.
I say that alcohol and other mind altering drugs should all be legal, but only after age 21 to 25, after the brain is almost, if not fully developed.
I think that the brain development is at least partly in response to expectations. Say that adolescence goes to 30 often enough, allow young people to be children to age 30, and many of them will. Determine that young people should be adult by 18-21, and most of them will.
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To be fair we still have 18 year olds in our military charging out to battle. It is how they are raised and not treating them like children. My son was on his own since he was 19.
