Stop Telling Me I Am 'Too Young To Understand' | The Odyssey Online
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Stop Telling Me I Am 'Too Young To Understand'

What makes you believe that I am incapable of understanding thoughts and feelings?

Kaylie Thompkins
May 31, 2017
University of Oklahoma
652
Stop Telling Me I Am 'Too Young To Understand'
Unsplash

There is nothing more frustrating than being told that you are "too young to understand." At 20 years old, I am more than capable of being able to logically process thoughts and emotions. According to Developmental Psychologists Jean Piaget, children reach the "Formal Operational Stage" at 12 years old which allows them to think abstractly and reasonably about hypothetical problems. This stage also allows for deductive logic and reasoning for specific reasoning. So according to Piaget, I have been able to "understand abstractly" for eight years now.

Being told that I am "too young to understand" degrades my thoughts and feelings as an adult. It is implying that I am unable to logically process what someone is saying due to my age. I have found that most adults that are married with children use this phrase quite often. Being married with children has nothing to do with being an adult and being able to logically understand something. My personal thoughts and feelings have been developed through situations I have encountered in my life. Although I have not have children nor have I been married, does not mean I am incapable of feeling or certain way towards a situation.

Thoughts and feelings are developed through personal values and these typically do not change. Your values are what you have placed through a certain standard of what you believe is important in life. And I believe that I am not too young to "understand" what someone is trying to say.

I have had life-experiences that have forced me to mature very quickly and think in a certain way. This life-experience has helped me shape my values to believe things that some with a lower maturity level fail to understand. Understanding hard-hitting situations more about maturity than age.

Just because I view certain issues and situations differently than someone who is older than me, does not mean I am incapable of undertsanding their feelings. It is about having an open mind towards things rather than jumping to conclusion that my age is why I don't agree with you. In reality it takes someone with a closed mind to believe that I am incompetent of thoughts and feelings due to age.

At twenty years old, I am an adult and is degrading to be treated like I am anything less than just because I'm not an older adult.

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This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
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