The Science Behind Adulthood: What Is The Science Behind Adulthood?

First of all, 21 is an appropriate age to be an adult because of the facts showing how the human brain doesn’t develop completely until one reaches their 20’s. A quote from “At What Age Is The Brain Fully Developed” states, “Although brain development is subject to significant individual

Adulthood in the later years of life is different from the previous stages of life. Unlike the stages in later adulthood, the earlier stages emphasize developmental growth and achievements. In the later years in life, a person must deal with deteriorating health and death. The developmental theories in late adulthood involve the methods in which an individual can deal with their relationships with their bodily changes, mental abilities, changes in close relationships, families, overall society, and intended and unintended relocations (Rathus, 2013).

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.

During teenage years your brain is under the influence of massive hormonal messages. Our brains are being reshaped. Depending on what the teen is doing will shape our brains that certain way. As a teen, being exposed to drugs, alcohol, inappropriate websites, violent movies/video games will affect and shape our brains and how our future will be by exposing our brains for addiction. There is constant changes in the teenage brain as well as the social and academic changes makes it hard for teens to figure out who they are at such a young age.

Are you under 25? If you are, how well do you think your brain is developed? In the video “The Teen Brain: Under Construction” claims that the brain is finished developing around the age of 25. This assertion starts many arguments on whether an 18 year olds should be considered an adult. Many say that 18 year olds should be considered adults, but many disagree. I deem that 18 year olds should not be considered adults, because their brains are not fully developed yet.

Based upon scientific findings, the adolescent brain is constantly growing and changing. The character Romeo, in Shakespeare’s famous play, displays how his adolescent brain is growing and changing. For instance, in the play, it states,”She is too fair, too wise, wisely too fair, to merit bliss by making me more despair.” (1.1. 218-219) This quote reveals that Romeo is deeply in love with Rosaline but as his youthful brain changes he quickly falls in love with Juliet with little knowledge of her. Not to mention, in the article, Are teenage brains really different from adult brains, it conveys, “Teenagers experience a wealth of growth in synapses during adolescence” (Edmonds). This small excerpt informs us that the synapses that help us make reasonable decisions are at an increase. In the same source, another significant

Modern cognitive scientists have come up with a new theory about the mind. After doing an experiment involving an MRI of the human brain from ages two to twenty-two, they have conluded that the human brain is not fully developed until at least 25 years old. This means that the justice system may be incorrect in trying juvinilles as adults in court cases. What is the proper age that a person is considered an adult?

Various studies and recent researches have come to determine that the brain is not fully developed until the mid-twenties. The problem with treating a child as an adult is that a child does not have the fully developed cognitive mental ability as someone in their mid-twenties or older.

In other words, the brain does not fully develop until the 25th year. Some critics accept that teenagers brains are immature and mentally retarded. They act in a different manner than adults as a result of their incomplete brains’.

How does the teenage brain develop into an adult brain? Teenagers slowly develop through many stages before they mature, some of these stages can be dangerous and addicting stages. There are many stereotypes about teenagers, for example, "You kids these days are always up to no good." Reasons for these stereotypes, are because teens show their behavior around anyone and it is typically bad which causes people to think that teens are always up to no good. Some teens feel the urge to do dumb and dangerous things, for example, drugs, alcohol, or pornography. Parents try to teach their children to stay away from these dangers because these dangers can harm them forever. Teens who give into peer pressure can be led into making negative choices.

For example, In the article Kids are Kids - Until they Commit Crimes by Marjie Lundstrom it states ¨they can't smoke, or drink, or go to R movies without the parents OK. It's why they don't vote. It is why they have curfews. Its why we fret over their internet access and fees about driving privileges¨(1, 3). They have curfews and rules for a reason. It is because they are not adults and should not be treated like one when they make a mistake. Girls reach the end of puberty around age 18, and boys at the age of 20. For example, in the article Startling Find on Teenage Brains by Paul Thompson it states “brain cells and connections are only being lost in the areas controlling impulses, risk taking, and self control. These frontal lobes, which inhibit out violent passion, rash actions, and regulate our emotions, are vastly immature throughout the teenage years”(1, 7). This tells us that that teenage brain does not work like adult brains. Teenager do not have full control over their brain because they have a massive loss of brain tissue that occurs in the teen years.

The teenage brain does not work how many people thought it did. It functions differently than and adult brain. Which brings me to the important question. Should eighteen year olds be considered adults yet? This essay will explain my standpoint and why this opinion stands. There are three main reasons as to why eighteen year olds should not be considered adults. The first one is because the human brain is not fully developed until the age of twenty-five. Secondly, at age eighteen the brain still contains grey matter. The last reason is that an immature brain leads to risk taking behaviors. Eighteen year olds should not be considered adults just yet.

So what separates a child from an adult? There are the obvious differences such as physical stature but Duke Learning Universities Doctor Carrie Muh says that the difference lies in the brain. “The brain does not reach its full development until the age of 25, that is when the frontal lobe is fully developed.” The ever advancing medical world is home to groundbreaking technology such as Magnetic Resonance Imaging, or MRI machines. With this doctors are able to get a view of what is going on in someones head. In 2008 Harvard Medical School did a study on teens to show how their brain functions differently than an adult brain. Harvard Medical professor of neurology Dr. Francis E. Jenson says that the adolescent brain is “A paradoxical time of

After birth, the nervous system works to develop the rest of the system and for the child to have core motor skills by the age of three. By the age of six, the brain will almost be to its full size, and the system is functioning for the child to have their personality, emotional responses, and reflexes to begin to finalize what they will be for a majority of the life span. Puberty begins around 11 for girls and 12 for boys, thus the anterior pituitary gland begins to release the hormones needed to let the body develop. The frontal lobe is still not fully developed at this age, which allows for poor judgement and loss of control of emotions as a high amount of hormones are now pumping through the body. The nervous system works to balance out any discrepancies in emotional balance, bodily growth, and personality developments in this stage of life. Adulthood occurs when puberty is over between age 17 and 22, and the brain reaches

Throughout the Human Behavior and the Social Environment course, we have encompassed the many stages of the life cycle process. Now that I am twenty two years old, I found the early adulthood stage to be the most influential, and the most sensible one to relate to given the point that I am at in my life. More importantly, I decided to research and apply this life cycle stage to a variety of milestones, experienced by my interviewee, Chelsie. Living just houses apart, being raised by single fathers, Chelsie and I found that we had many things in common. We have remained friends since we were children, and have only grown to be closer into our early adulthood years.