Undeveloped frontal cortex is why youth lean liberal

[TheDude]

At What Age Is The Brain Fully Developed?

What does the prefrontal cortex do?
There are a variety of functions for which the prefrontal cortex is responsible. Although significant development of the prefrontal region occurs during adolescence, experts argue that it continues until (at least) our mid 20s.

• Attention: The ability to focus on one thing, while ignoring distractions is a function of our prefrontal cortex. Those with attentional deficits (e.g. ADHD) may have abnormalities within the prefrontal region. Similarly, those who abuse drugs and/or alcohol may end up with attention problems as the brain forms.
• Complex planning: The prefrontal region is responsible for complex planning. Anytime you set a goal that requires some degree of planning, your prefrontal region is at work. Planning out tasks in your day, developing a business plan, etc. – this region is responsible. An underdeveloped prefrontal region means that your planning capabilities haven’t been solidified.
• Decision making: We often struggle to make good decisions when we are teenagers, but as we enter our 20s, our decision making improves. This is due to the fact that our prefrontal cortex helps us think logically and make more calculated assessments of situations. Our brain weighs the risks and tells us whether a certain behavior or choice is a good idea vs. a bad one.
• Impulse control: Struggling with impulsivity is often related to deficits in the prefrontal cortex. The ability to maintain self-discipline and avoid impulsive behaviors hasn’t reached its peak until the 20s. This means that if you struggle with impulsivity when you’re 18, it may get better as you continue to age.
• Logical thinking: Justifying behaviors based off of emotions rather than logic is common among teens. When the prefrontal cortex fully develops, logical thinking simultaneously improves. This means you will be better at rationalizing and making smarter choices. It also means that your ability to write and solve math problems will improve.
• Organized thinking: Organizing your thinking can be difficult when you’re a teen. A barrage of thoughts are typically influenced by hormones and you may have concentration difficulties. As you continue to age and your thoughts become more organized. The organization of your thoughts is a result of your prefrontal cortex.
• Personality development: Your personality is directly expressed based off of your prefrontal cortex. Without proper stimulation, you may struggle with identity issues and developing a favorable personality. Since personality development continues throughout the 20s, you may want to consider how environmental inputs may affect who you are.
• Risk management: The ability to assess risky situations and determine whether they will result in long-term benefit is a byproduct of your prefrontal cortex. Those who are poor at assessing risk may have underdeveloped prefrontal regions. The ability to turn down immediate gratification for long-term rewards is a result of this region.
• Short-term memory: Your short-term memory function is influenced by the prefrontal cortex. When still in development, your short-term memory isn’t as good as it will be by the time you’re 25. As the brain continues to mature, your cognitive function and memorization capacity will improve.

 

[toobfreak]

Good post. I would only add that development is spurred through stimulation at an early age now lacking in part due to parents leaving kids in child care so both parents can work, and later, by a government run school system that rather than encourage independent thought and critical thinking, reinforces compliance, conformity, restrictions and social engineering (told what to think) at the threat of fear, discipline and punishment. The coupe de grace is the modern smartphone where problems are now solved by websites giving solutions rather than the individual formulating a solution himself. This leads to a weakened id where the ideology of liberalism imposed by the teachers are more easily impressed upon the non-critical mind. You can see the results very often here where many liberal thinkers come to specious conclusions through utterly vacuous means.