Introduction
The female brain undergoes a series of changes throughout the lifespan, and research shows that many of these changes are related to a variety of factors including hormones, stress, health and age. For example, studies have found that puberty is associated with tremendous structural reorganization in the brains of adolescents as they transition from childhood to adulthood, along with medical and social changes.
Childhood is also a critical period for brain development in females. During this time, new neural connections are formed in response to short- and long-term experiences all the way up until the early-to-mid 20s. During this period, specific regions of the brain known as Broca’s area and Wernicke’s area are responsible for language processing – these regions can change dramatically during teen years through early adulthood due to hormonal fluctuations and experiences.
These two examples just begin to scratch the surface when it comes to female brain development – there is so much more to learn about this amazing organ! In this article, we will provide an overview of when a female brain typically reaches full maturity and beyond.
Physical Development
The female brain is incredibly complex and not fully understood yet, however, we do have an understanding of the physical development of the brain. During puberty, the female brain goes through major changes that affect physical, emotional, and cognitive development. We will look at what the physical changes in the female brain are during this stage and how they can impact development.
Brain Structure
Physical development of the brain begins before birth and continues through to early adulthood. The female brain undergoes significant structural changes throughout the lifespan, which can directly correlate with an individual’s behavior, physiological and psychological development.
The structure of the female brain is established in utero; however, during childhood and adolescence its composition changes considerably. During this period, gray matter increases steadily while white matter tends to remain constant until late puberty. Gray matter density typically increases most rapidly around age 6-11 in girls and then again between 11-15 years old, this secondary increase being more pronounced in girls than boys.
The overall process of maturation finishes at a much later age for females than males— up to four or five years later – suggesting that their brain (and hence behavioral tendencies) may differ from those of their male counterparts due to delays in development. Various parts of the female brain might also mature at slightly different rates than those of males, including language processing areas and sections associated with executive functioning as well as emotion regulation.
In addition to these differences in regional growth rates over time, several structural gender differences have been identified between adult females and males— not only are there more neural pathways connecting areas involved with language processing and memory recall in the female brains but they are also denser than those seen in male brains on average. Females also may have a higher processing capacity than males due to having more ‘white matter bundle fibers’ which are wires that facilitate communication across different regions within the cerebral cortex – where cognitive functions occur.
Brain Connections
During adolescence, the brain undergoes significant changes as neural connections form, mature, and become increasingly efficient. We commonly refer to this stage of brain development as “pruning” – a process in which under-utilized synapses are eliminated while important pathways are strengthened.
This pruning process is important to physical and mental health – it strengthens the neural circuits that enable us to concentrate, remember information, make decisions, plan ahead and contain emotions. New connections are also forming in key areas throughout the brain that subsequently lead to improved cognitive skills and processing speeds.
The pruning process is largely complete by young adulthood but continues until approximately age 25 with the frontal cortex developing last – an area of the brain associated with complex thinking skills such as problem solving, multitasking and impulse control. Thus, adolescents have been found to have better performance on working memory tasks that require flexible use of information in comparison with adults who perform best on tests requiring long-term storage or retrieval of information.
Research also suggests that during adolescence there may be a decrease in gray matter density in certain areas of the cortex linked to executive functioning and memory but development is typically seen in subcortical structures associated with reward processing like the nucleus accumbens. This may partially explain why teens often take risks for reward even when there is not much reward (or safety) involved.
Cognitive Development
Cognitive development is the process of acquiring and retaining knowledge, as well as conceptualizing, problem solving, and using language. This process occurs over time, and begins early in life. In terms of gender, the female brain typically develops and matures faster than the male brain.
In this article, we’ll explore the process of cognitive development in females, and when the female brain is fully developed.
Language Development
In addition to growth and development of physical traits and motor skills, a female brain is also developing complex verbal and nonverbal communication skills. Language development begins with infants babbling simple syllables, which gradually give way to single words and eventually entire sentences. With practice, these skills develop into more subtle forms of communication such as facial expressions and understanding implied meaning in speech. As the female brain continues to mature, language skills become increasingly important for social interaction with peers.
Specifically from birth through age three, females learn language more rapidly as their brains are developing at a faster rate than boys during this time frame. By age two, most females are capable of speaking some simple words or phrases. This is enhanced by surrounding behaviors such as mimicry that encourage the child to repeat sounds or words that they hear others say in conversation. Throughout toddlerhood until adolescence or adulthood, there is further refinement in the accuracy of vocabulary used and syntactical structures formed when communicating verbally. Familial interactions also influence language acquisition through play-based activities such as reading aloud together or having conversations about daily routines and events as a means of encouraging knowledge sharing through verbal interactions with parents or siblings.
It has been theorized that females possess an advanced linguistic capability due to their keen ability for processing verbal information faster than their male counterparts from toddlerhood up until adulthood; however further research is necessary to unlock the complexities surrounding this notion. Nevertheless, language development in early years plays a crucial role for furthering cognitive advancement among females; it serves as an essential component of navigating environments that demand higher levels of verbal comprehension within primary schooling years and beyond into adulthood.
Social and Emotional Development
Social and Emotional Development is a key aspect of cognitive development in children. It encompasses the ability to form relationships, develop empathy and respond to social cues. Children learn to recognize, manage and understand their own emotions, as well as those around them, through social interaction with family, friends and caregivers.
It takes time for children to learn the skills needed for managing their own emotions and responding appropriately in different social situations. Parents can help their children improve these skills by providing support, setting limits and encouraging them to express themselves. They should also be mindful of how they handle their own emotions to create a safe environment for all family members.
Other important factors that contribute to Social & Emotional Development are:
- Communication
- Problem-solving abilities
- Cooperation
- Self-care skills
Positive Social & Emotional Development leads to increased self-confidence and better interpersonal relationships which can have a positive impact on other areas of life such as school performance. It is important to create an atmosphere where children feel comfortable expressing themselves both verbally and nonverbally so that they can develop healthy relationships with others. Providing an environment that is emotionally stimulating can have a positive influence on Social & Emotional Development by enriching the child’s thinking process.
Executive Functioning
Executive functioning is a set of cognitive processes that enable self-regulation, the ability to control impulses, prioritize tasks and use problem-solving strategies. It is closely tied to the development of impulse control and executive functioning skills, both of which are critical for success in adulthood.
Girls reach certain milestones in their cognitive development earlier than boys, with female brains reaching full maturity earlier than male brains. Specifically, girls typically reach key milestones related to executive functioning much earlier than boys. In general, girls go through puberty 1-2 years before boys and can display more complex understanding of social relationships by this time as well. Girls may also demonstrate more advanced skills at multitasking, organizing and using emotion to help inform decision making by their mid-teen years due to their stronger ability for self-management and improved impulse control relative to boys.
Although girls typically mature faster overall when it comes to cognitive development, this doesn’t mean they do not continue developing later in life. There are still aspects that evolve throughout adolescence that require dedicated focus and effort such as:
- Decision making under pressure
- Developing an appropriate level of risk taking behavior
which may take time and practice for both genders to master.
Adolescence
It has been well established that the human brain is still maturing up until the age of 25. Adolescence is a period of development between childhood and adulthood, and is typically marked by the onset of puberty. During this time, brain networks are rapidly reorganizing and peaking in terms of development, and this is especially true for the female brain.
Let’s explore the development of the female brain in adolescence:
Puberty
Puberty is the time in life when a girl’s body actually develops into a mature adult. This process of growth and physical transformation involves hormonal and biochemical changes in the body that begin around the age of 8 or 9 and generally last until age 16 or 17. Once these changes are complete, a girl’s brain has reached full maturity.
During puberty, hormones are released from the brain to stimulate physical changes. This includes growth in height and weight, fat storage, muscle strengthening, and sex-related organs developing such as breasts and pubic hair. At this point in life, girls often go through mood swings or get easily distracted – all normal behaviors for a developing teenager!
For female adolescents to reach their full cognitive potential, their brains need enough vitamin D, zinc, healthy proteins, complex carbohydrates (e.g., oats), essential fatty acids (e.g., salmon), iron, B vitamins (especially folic acid), and sufficient rest. In addition to eating nutritious foods throughout adolescence to maintain proper nutrition levels could support an adolescent girl’s bodily development – including her brain development – during this crucial period. Taking care of her mental health at this stage is also key – talking with supportive mentors such as parents, teachers or other trusted adults can help build self-confidence strategies for coping with everyday stressors she may encounter during this time frame and emotions she may experience throughout pubertal development.
Brain Maturation
Adolescence is a period marked by profound changes in the development of the brain. New pathways for thinking, feeling, and behaving are formed, along with reorganizing of existing neural networks that involve both structural and functional changes. As the brain matures, teenagers learn to think more critically and to analyze situations more deeply than they could before.
Structural changes include alteration in the physical wiring of the brain networks. For example, immature brains increase in total volume until approximately 16 years old but then decrease gradually after that due to a process known as pruning, where unused neurons are removed from the network which allows for more efficient functioning later on (Shaw et al., 2008). Pruning is stimulated through experience and exposure to different stimuli during development; therefore it is important for adolescents to be exposed to diverse experiences so that these neuronal connections can form correctly and adequately throughout their teenage years.
Functional changes within adolescence occur largely due to an influx of hormones released during puberty such as dopamine, norepinephrine, serotonin and oxytocin which are involved in regulating emotions (Hooks et al., 1998). This causes reorganization within existing neural pathways which results in re-ordering of behavior and preferences from those observed during preadolescence into those exhibited during adulthood. Additionally, this hormone surge lead adolescents to seek out new experiences – such as exploring things unknown or challenging – as part of their ‘identity formation’ or emerging sense-of-self (Liu et al., 2018). It is important for parents/guardians/caregivers during this critical stage of mental development – noting that adolescents will often push boundaries set by adults – because such seeking of novelty/diverse scenarios may also lead them down risky behavior paths (e.g., alcohol use disorder; Grant & Dawson, 1998).
Adulthood
Adulthood is a time of significant brain development for females. At this stage, the female brain is able to integrate physical, psychological, and cognitive components for a more comprehensive level of functioning.
In adulthood, the female brain is able to better manage emotions and engage in more complex problem-solving. The female brain also becomes more efficient in identifying and responding to social cues. However, this maturity of the female brain is not without its challenges.
Let’s take a closer look at how the female brain matures during adulthood.
Brain Function
The female brain is considered to be fully developed by the mid-20s. Brain regions associated with emotional regulation, complex thinking, and learning become more synaptically connected and efficient in the early twenties. The cognitive reward system matures during these years as well, helping to shape behavior for delayed gratification and prosocial goals. During this period of life, young adults make decisions about education, career, relationships and social activities that often persist into adulthood.
At the same time, adolescents go through rapid changes in most key brain regions between late adolescent years and early adulthood. Many are still not fully developed by mid-20s; those related to emotional management still lag behind others until early 30s. This explains why problem-solving abilities increase well into adulthood for some people.
These developments affect different areas of a female’s brain at varying intensities depending on the context of their life experience, education level and other individual factors such as risk taking tendencies or comfort with intimacy/social connection. People who are able to express their emotions better have shown higher functioning levels in other areas as attentive decision making or strategic planning; while those who are able to delay gratification have demonstrated greater self-control while facing difficult tasks over uncomfortable triggers like emotions or high stakes situations like job recruitment process.
All this bring us to understand that although most women reach full neurological maturity between 26 – 35 years old; there is no one age that marks a full shift into adulthood functioning since individuals respond differently to maturation processes according to their own life experiences.
Social and Emotional Development
Adulthood is a period of physical maturation, as we are all aware; however, it is also a time of significant social and emotional development. Understanding the social and emotional aspects of adulthood helps us to adjust better to new situations and cope with life’s challenges.
As adults, we develop secure relationships with peers, colleagues and family members. These relationships provide us with support when we experience stress or anxiety and contribute to our overall wellbeing. Moreover, during adulthood, we can strengthen our self-esteem by exploring hobbies or engaging in activities that give us a sense of achievement and pride.
The stronger relationships that adults develop have an influence on their ability to manage and regulate emotions. As they learn adaptive strategies for dealing with difficult emotions such as anger or grief, they become better equipped to handle unexpected challenges. Better control over their emotional states can also influence how challenges are perceived. For instance, problem-focused coping allows adults to establish more clear goals in times of crises instead of trying only to eliminate the negative feelings associated with the situation.
Adulthood is an exciting period for personal growth and development that involves much more than just physical changes; it is also a crucial opportunity for developing improved social skills, strengthening existing relationships and reaping the rewards of increased autonomy.
Conclusion
Overall, research shows that brain development in females is shaped by a mix of biological forces and environmental influences. There is not a definitive age when female brain development ends, as the process will continue during the reproductive years. A person’s environment, lifestyle, diet, and genetics are all likely to influence their brain development.
Although female brains tend to be slightly smaller than male brains, women generally have greater proportional neuron densities than men. This suggests that more neurons may be packed into a woman’s brain tissue and that women are usually more efficient at processing information than men. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies have revealed differences in brain activities between men and women when performing specific cognitive tasks, but there is no clear consensus on how these differences influence behavior.
While some evidence suggests that gender-based discrepancies in cognition exist from birth or throughout life as a result of socialization processes, much research remains to be done to understand the full implications of these discrepancies on female cognition later in life.