By Haneen Bany-Mohammed, Staff Writer
It’s a common statement we’ve heard: Girls mature faster than boys cognitively and physically. But why is that exactly is this narrative pushed?
In fact, not only do girls mature faster than boys, scientists believe that their brains can develop up to ten years earlier!
In a study performed by Newcastle University in England, it was discovered that as the brain matures it begins to remove neural connections that are stored which it does not think are important. The connections in the brain that are not used regularly tend to shrink and evaporate due to lack of use-whereas the neural networks that are regularly engaged survive. This is called ¨fire and wire,¨ and is an example of survival of the fittest among neural networks.
Optimizing brain connectivity is designed to benefit human survival. As researcher Sol Jim said, “The loss of connectivity during brain development can actually help to improve brain function by reorganizing the network more efficiently.¨
However, in our modern world many of these connections are short-circuited due to a neurobiological disorientation. Environmental pressures like needing to perform well on tests, poor nutrition and a lack of physical activity make it difficult for the young brain to form optimal connections during adolescence. Boys are especially vulnerable to the short-circuiting of these neural networks from the lack of physical activity they are able to do. The constriction of sitting in a desk for hours a day prevents them from going out there and doing the physical activity they need.
The removal of neural networks and optimizing of brain connectivity usually occurs during ages 10-12 in girls, and 15-20 in boys, which explains females´ faster maturation in certain cognitive and emotional areas during childhood and adolescence.
Girls physically mature faster than boys on a physical level as well due to the quicker process of puberty. Girls undergo puberty earlier than boys by about 1-2 years, and generally finish the stages of puberty quicker than males due to their differences in biology.
Although it is not exactly known why girls experience puberty earlier than boys, evolutionary perspective theorizes women develop faster so that they do not choose a male of their same age, who is less able to protect and provide for them and their potential child.
Considering the different responsibilities men and women have in the environment, it might make sense for a woman to physically mature quicker than a man, as her body needs to prepare itself to be ready to hold a child. Either way, men eventually catch up to women both cognitively and physically, and are not any less mature once developed.
