Are Adults Behaving More Immaturely In General

[Deleted member 12723]

I liked the piece that @Cj77 put up as it is pretty right on the mark, just my opinion. She defined it better.

 

[anthony]

I also think this applies though: Philosophically, the term "dumbing down" is a relative definition, because what is considered dumbing down depends on the taste, value judgement, and intellectual level of the person involved in the matter.

 

[Deleted member 29920]

One example is that of people taking selfies that endanger their lives, and some who have actually met their deaths that way. Would people have been so careless a few decades ago?

 

[anthony]

Would people have been so careless a few decades ago?

If they had mobile phones with the technology we have now, combined with the Internet to share it with, sure they would have.

 

[Deleted member 29920]

Even though in the early 90's the people who liked computers were viewed as weirdos and geeks, while the majority weren't interested in computers?

Mind you, they have made it easy for pretty much any level of intelligence to use computers..so I guess they would still have been careless :confused:

 

[anthony]

You could look at kids in tertiary eduction and drinking. The problem was far larger decades ago, where a majority drunk heavily, where now based on what we know about alcohol and its effects, social awareness and education on it, the same issue is much smaller. Many students use alcohol in moderation, or not at all now, as a result.

Society is getting smarter, not dumber... and that is factually statistically measured. I see more stress on people to perform, so maybe that is one reason for people needing things in their life where they can not think so readily about, trying to relieve some mental pressure... and one could view only that context of their life and say, society is dumbing down, OR, IMHO, in context of it is one small component of who that person is, and in essence, their place in greater society.

Society is much smarter, far more mature, now, than it ever was. Respectful and such manners, that I would agree was left decades past... everyone is in a rush now, burn the bra, all sorts of political views and movements have changed respect and manners, towards each other, towards each sex. But that is JMHO, other than the statistical facts part, that is fact and you will easily find that data with a quick Google scholar search.

 

[anthony]

viewed as weirdos and geeks

Is that the same then as being gay decades back, used to be a mental illness? Lots of society was wrong then versus being much smarter now.

 

[Deleted member 12723]

@anthony I live in America the US and I respectfully agree to disagree with you.

 

[Deleted member 29920]

Yes, again, it really does depend where you are on the planet, a lot of the British are very immature now when they previously weren't.

 

[Deleted member 29920]

Some may be smarter, yes, but still just as powerless.

 

[Sideways]

Immaturity. Hmm.

Many of the longer works by Charles Dickens were written as instalments for the newspaper - their version of the modern day soap opera. Comparisons in diction and themes (love, power, goodies v's baddies) are similar if you account for the time period. If you compare Bleak House and Martin Chuzzlewit to Bold and the Beautiful and Home and Away, seems to me that what entertains the masses hasn't really shifted that much over the centuries.

Real comparisons about intellect are difficult given the advances in technology and public education. But as far as 'maturity' goes, I'd say that the natural ebb and flow of one year to the next misses the bigger picture which seems to be that, roughly speaking, the masses are pretty much as they always have been.

Freeways, driving a car - they're actually pretty complex. People get frustrated. A horse and cart moves slower, and there were far less on the road. So how do you compare that? My guess is there used to be idiot horse & buggy drivers and the odd bout of Buggy-Rage roughly proportionate to the number of cars on the road today. And soccer mums may get a bit insane in the bleachers sometimes, but by all accounts, people used to get a bit insane watching public court hearings a few hundred years ago.

Seems a bit like swings and roundabouts to me:tdown:

 

[mamachick]

I like the term "dumbing down" to describe some of this. I can even apply one aspect to driving. When I was younger, in my 20's, I would not dare give someone the finger in traffic, if not for my own conscience-what if it turned out to be my bosses wife, or another pta mother or my parents neighbor. Now the attitude seems to be "too bad, the other person was wrong". But I am not saying that it is our kids or those in their 20's that started this, I see more idiots in their 50's but younger as well. Just as I would have never told a teacher to F OFF. Im not saying these things didn't happen but it was thought of much different. Do people just seem to laugh everything off? I have heard 50 plus yr old woman talk about sex acts with multiple 20 some yr olds and most of the other women just laugh it off. One of my friends was utterly disgusted and walked away and told me this could be one of her sons. If our parents generation would have done such, they would not share that way. Everyone knows they look like idiots but everyone laughs at it, kind of like the functional alcoholic that entertains the party. Also like there is no such thing as bad publicity. People dont think about things before doing or saying. Very reactive. That is where I live though.