[Raichan]

I know that age is a very important factor to be taken into account when it comes to determining a person's maturity, but it is not the only factor that measures wisdom or maturity.

I found that a few people, although they are of a much older age than me (and they're not even my parents or family members!) they tried to ''fix'' me when I didn't ask for it without really understanding my situations. They seem to think that they understand my motives and feelings, but they never came close. And also, I can think of a lot of other experiences that made me doubt the maturity of certain adults.

I hope people understand where I'm coming from. Frankly, it annoys me when I get misunderstood (I've noticed how misunderstood I have been a lot of times on PerC). Sorry a bit off topic over there. So to clarify, I mean that age is linked to maturity, but it is not a constant determinant factor for ALL cases. Maturity also comes from experiences and education, depending on how the individual utilize them. Seriously, people, human socialization is an active process.


Anyway..can other INFP's relate?

 

[Windswept Sky]

Yes, I definitely agree.

Also, openmindedness has a lot to do with maturity, and there are a lot of closeminded adults. I've often found that this is the case with adults who try to change me or fix me without actually understanding.

I really do respect openminded, mature older people, though. I have seen a few post on these forums and it always makes me feel happy to see it.

I think maturity just really boils down to who you are and what your experiences have been, not age. Age can certainly indicate more experiences and more time to sort yourself out, but not everyone uses their time wisely.

 

[refugee]

some people stay immature their whole lives.

 

[Ectoplasm]

I would have no idea how mature I am, I can't agree due to the moments of childlike immaturity on one end (I even have a couple of subtle childish and childlike quirks in my behaviour) and the moments of maturity where I try and stand strong against whatever life throws at me - which are often simple issues I have overcomplicated to the point of becoming enormous, unbearable problems.

Others have too many differing opinions about it. I wonder whether I even care anymore how mature I am. Maturing and aging are both overrated I believe.

 

[Roze]

Agreed, Izzie. Age is a factor, but to me, the way one sees life affects your maturity that much more. Also, everything that one has experienced in their lifetime can affect it too. Whether in a positive or negative manner, depends on yourself. There's so many different factors regarding maturity, including the person who judges how mature another person is.

While I'm talking about maturity, allow me to say that maturity is hot <3

 

[Shaneus]

Age is linked to maturity, and I feel that as you grow older, you should be more mature in general. That doesn't mean you have to necessarily act like an "grown up", just that in certain situations, you're able to make better decisions based on life experience.

I'm definitely mature, but I think we as INFPs (and definitely some other types as well) are lucky in that we have a fair idea when we should act mature and when it's merely optional :wink: Others either seem to do it all the time (stick-in-the-muds) or not at all.

 

[Rogue Eagle]

I've said it many times, age is not synonymous with maturity.

The fact is it pisses me off when people have tried to discredit me on age alone in the past.

 

[Vurtigo]

I consider myself to be childlike, not childish, and mature at the same time.

 

[SubterraneanHomesickAlien]

When I was twelve, I was more mature than the vast majority of adults I deal with now. And I hated it, because everybody around me acted like, well... twelve-year-old boys.

 

[teddy564339]

I know I'm not an INFP, but the topic still caught my interest.

Here's my thing...you are right in that just because someone is older doesn't mean that they're more mature. It also doesn't mean that they have more knowledge. And certainly, it's frustrating to a younger person when an older person tries to tell them what to do and doesn't listen to the younger person's thoughts or feelings.


But the way I've always looked at it is that someone older than me probably has something to offer me, just because they've had more time to live their life and more time to learn things about their lives and themselves. I'm 27 now, and there are a lot of things that I thought when I was 17 that I don't agree with any more. A number of these things were things that older people had told me about when I was 17.


Teenagers in general are at a point in their lives where they're tired of being told what to do and want to do things their own way. And I think every single person looks back on their own teenage years and realized there were some things they were totally wrong about (even if they don't want to admit it :tongue: )


So this is always a tough thing because as a younger person, you never know. In one case, an older person will tell you something, and when you reach their age, you'll disagree with it and know that they were wrong. But in another case, they'll tell you something when you're younger, you'll disagree with it then, but when you get older you'll realize that they were totally right.

So you can see how frustrating it is for an older person who wants to help out a younger person and have the younger person not listen. It's like trying to stop a fire from starting but having to helplessly watch it burn away anyway.


So I always feel that both sides should try to keep the other side in mind. A younger person should realize that older people have experienced more (and they always have, at least in terms of time, which does matter) and are usually just trying to help (even if they're wrong), and an older person should realize that not everyone's the same and that sometimes people have to take their own paths. Hopefully, this will lead to a younger person being more receptive to an older person's advice which is good advice.

 

[bluefaerie]

I agree. I feel that maturity has a lot to do with the personal development and growth of our "inner" selves. This helps us understand ourselves better, make better choices, and be able to relate better with others.