18 year old brain is not "developing". 18-20 is literally the peak of your intelligence. After 20 you start getting dumb and demented.
At almost any given age, most of us are getting better at some things and worse at others. We're the best at math at age 50, on average.
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Forgive me if am skeptical about an article about neuroscience from Business Insider.
Although you may consider yourself an adult at age 18, your brain still has a lot of development yet to undergo. Your cognition, ability to assess risk, and think logically will continue to improve as you age. This is considerably different than neuroscience views of the past in which we thought the brain was done developing in the teenage years.
In fact, neuroscientists largely agree that the human brain hasn't fully developed until the mid-20s. Additionally our personality as well as development of the prefrontal cortex is finalized well into our 20s.
All of the changes occurring between ages 18 and 25 are essentially a continued process of brain development that started during puberty. When you're 18, you're roughly halfway through the entire stage of development. The prefrontal cortex doesn't have nearly the functional capacity at age 18 as it does at 25. There are a variety of functions for which the prefrontal cortex is responsible.
The nerve fibers in your brain are covered with a substance called "myelin." This helps provide insulation so that neurons can effectively transmit signals. During developmental stages, the process of myelination promotes healthy brain functioning and allows for more complex functions.
Synaptic pruning is the process by which brain synapses are selectively "pruned" or eliminated throughout brain development. The process of synaptic pruning tends to peak during teenage years, and wanes in later adolescence. It should be noted that the pruning occurs until the brain is fully developed (likely into the mid-20s). This allows for more efficient brain functioning.
Increased connectivity:
During this time connections between brain regions appear to be strengthened, thus making communication more efficient. The brain is able to transmit greater amounts of information between regions and becomes better at planning, dealing with emotions, and problem solving.
A majority of the executive functions that we develop are via the prefrontal cortex. This allows us to help assess risk, think ahead, evaluate ourselves, set goals, and regulate our emotions. Although many of these functions are developed during teenage years, they are still under slight development and strengthened until our mid-20s.
This means that some people may have major struggles with impulsive decisions and planning behavior to reach a goal. The brain's reward system tends to reach a high level of activation during puberty, then gradually drifts back to normal activation when a person reaches roughly the age of 25. Adults over the age of 25 tend to feel less sensitive to the influence of peer pressure and have a much easier time handling it.
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.
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.
When it comes to decision making, people 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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
And despite the fact that brain development may be done by our 30s, it doesn't mean that someone with a fully developed brain cannot change it. There is considerable evidence to suggest that we can still change our own brains with a process called "neuroplasticity." Our brains are constantly adapting to our environment, experiences, and other inputs to which it is exposed.
