Are The Brains Of Reckless Teens More Mature Than Those Of Their Prudent Peers? Essay

Research depicts that teenagers fail to notice risks in a situation and completely process other ones when adults thoroughly examine the consequences and focus on the ending outcome. An article by Maia Szalavitz titled “Why the Teen Brain is Drawn to Risk” suggests that teens engage in drunk driving because they don’t completely scan the outcome of the situation, but they fully comprehend the risk of partaking in other activities that adults would immediately dismiss after looking at the possible outcomes such as Russian Roulette(Source F). This shows that adults quickly decide on seemingly dangerous actions because they view the finishing outcome of that activity while teems envision the whole activity and still choose to participate. On top of that, young adults are intrigued by unknown risks rather than known ones. Chris Sharma, a famous rock climber, mentions that he is "looking for new, hard climbs that no one has even thought possible" in a video named “Who Is Chris Sharma?”(Source G). This suggests that, as a young adult, he searches for climbs that have a high risk level that is unknown or ambiguous. Because adolescents have distinct judgment than that of an adults, they handle risky decision-making in another

The article “Dude, Where’s My Frontal Cortex?” by Robert Sapolsky talks about the delayed maturation of the frontal cortex in teenagers and how the underdeveloped frontal cortex is the cause of erratic behavior of teenagers. Sapolsky explains to the reader how the frontal cortex does not fully develop until the age of twenty for a person and how that part of the brain is important for extensive reasoning, impulse control, and emotional regulation. He shows the reader how particularly emotional situations affect both a teenager and an adult differently due to either having or not having a matured frontal cortex. This example that he uses allows for the reader to see how a teenager responds to situations with extreme thoughts and behavior which

A teenagers risk taking is a crucial part of their brains development and can significantly benefit their growth as a person. Recent test have shown that in social situations, teenagers are more likely to take risks. In the article, Beautiful Brains, the author, David Dobbs, discussed a study in which teenagers played a game alone, then with people in the room. “When teens drive the course alone, in what Steinberg calls the emotionally ‘cool’ situation of an empty room, they take risks at the same rates that adults do.” (Pbs.org) This shows that teenagers are capable of making good decisions and taking the same amount of risks as a developed adult. So many parents assume that they take unnecessary risk, when really, the teenager knows exactly

In “Beautiful Brains”, Dobbs illustrates there is a method to teenage madness. Through citing several scientific studies in an easily digestible fashion, Dobbs explains the impulsiveness and irrationality of the adolescent mind. Dobbs claims that teenagers are naturally risk takers because it is evolutionarily advantageous, as it allows them to adapt to new situations. Dobbs first draws the reader in with an anecdote about his own son, who was caught speeding over 100 mph. Having a bizarre response to his father, ‘’ He agreed. In fact, he sounded somber and contrite. He did not object when I told him he 'd have to pay the fines and probably for a lawyer. He did not argue when I pointed out that if anything happens at that speed—a dog in the road, a blown tire, a sneeze—he dies. He was in fact almost irritatingly reasonable. He even proffered that the cop did the right thing in stopping him, for, as he put it, "We can 't all go around doing 113."’’

When asked if teenagers can understand the true meaning of love, I would have to weigh in that I do not believe teenagers can perceive the concept of love.

David Dobbs in the Article “Beautiful Brains” proves the theme that it takes teenage brains longer to mature due to the recent change in impulsivity and adolescent behaviors.

Researchers can look at the brain of a teen to examine their behavioral decisions.Teenage brains these years are more active and dynamic which means it’s still developing.Processing in the Limbic system is a result of risky behavior.The construction of a teenage thinking brain is not cable of fully processing necessary to make responsible decisions.At this stage the brain is still developing.The brain changes depending on interactions, helpimg the teen make changes. At this time the brain will need focused and support for a healthy connection.Surrounding impacts the child faces such as challenging situations is an effective technique.Parents need to consider the teens emotional

The article “Inside the Teen Brain’ by Marty Wolner, states that the human brain provides parents with shocking new evidence to possibly explain the sometimes irrational, illogical, and impulsive behavior of teenagers. Teenage years are radically more active and dynamic than they previously thought. So teenagers are left with most of the information reaching their brains being processed in the emotional part (limbic system). Information processed in the limbic system without benefit increases the processing in the prefrontal cortex. It may result in impulsive, egocentric, and maybe even risky behavior choices. The prefrontal cortex of the teenage brain does not excuse inappropriate or irresponsible behavior from the teen. The brain is not yet

When one compares the structure of the adult brain and the teenage brain, there will be several differences between the two. Adults have stronger connections from one nerve cell to another, and they all have essential communication skills. However, teenagers have more synapses and have weaker nerve connections. Also, their frontal lobes aren 't fully developed. This causes adolescence to have impulsive behavior and they typically do not recognize consequences in a situation. In the early twenties the brain becomes fully developed, so people are very good at making decision and they are able to think abstractly. There are many factors that contribute to the construction of the brain; some things help the brain develop normally, other things interrupt the process. There is a substantial amount of distinctions between the adult brain and the adolescent brain, and these includes behavioral and structural differences.

The PFC is not fully developed until the mid-twenties of a person’s life. “It is considered the seat of the ‘rational’ brain, since its functions include high level reasoning, decision making, impulse control, assessment of consequences, forward planning behavior modification and priority setting.” Behaviors such as impulsivity, inflexibility, emotional volatility and risk taking by adolescents can be explained by the lack of development in the PFC. Adolescents are more likely to not make rational choices under the conditions of high emotions and intense pressure; “they are more likely to act impulsively or without full consideration of the consequences”

Many parents or adults wonder why adolescents act the way they do and want answers as to why. Numerous of these actions adolescents make are because of the prefrontal cortex(PFC). The PFC isn’t developed until the mid 20s which causes teenagers to lack on seeing the consequences before they make a risky or impulsive decision. In The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, he illustrates that adolescents show impulsivity, decision making, and risk taking.

Adolescents make more rash decisions than any other age group. This behavior linked with teenagers leads to risky actions because of the design of the teenage brain. On the flip side, the blueprint of the teenage brain permits teens to pick up new skills by seeking out different adventures. The teenage characters in Romeo and Juliet pose as an accurate representation of typical teenage decision making. Although this is consistent behavior with this age group, based upon scientific findings of adolescent brain growth, brain maturity, and pleasure drive, teenagers like Romeo and Juliet should be held responsible for their risk-taking and impulsive behavior.

The teenage brain is different from the adult brain version because it is not fully developed. The part of the brain used for emotions like rage and fright, the amygdala is much more developed than the frontal cortex (used for thinking through your thoughts). The way scientists found this out was pictures of Teen’s brains in action. (Teen Brain…). This would explain why teens tend to be more angry and impulsive compared to adults. Teens have a higher chance of impulsive acting, starting fights, do risky behaviors, etc. Knowledge of the teen’s frontal cortex’s lack of development can assist guardians, teachers, and lawmakers in unlocking the answers on management on how to manage adolescent behavior.

Paul Thompson the author of “Startling Finds on Teenage Brains” claims that teenagers must be charged as juveniles, and not adults because their brains are not fully developed.In Thompson's article, he mainly uses logos and hardly any ethos.”These frontal lobes, which inhibit our violent passions, rash actions, and regulate our emotions, are vastly immature throughout the teenage years(7)”In this quotation, Thompson doesn’t mention who or where he found this information so therefore it makes it weak in ethos. It seems like the only time he does use ethos is when it's reported in the news already and he doesn't have anything to back it up.”In terms of cognitive development, as research on the human brain has shown...young teens are far from

Have you ever witnessed a teenager taking a risk? Adolescents are taking more risks than ever, such as drinking, vaping, texting while driving, having unprotected sex, and participating in extreme sports. Research suggests that there are, in fact, specific reasons why teens take risks. Three important effects of the drive to take risks in young people include dopamine, peer pressure, and a parents influence on their children.