2008-09-20, 11:05 AM
I think the internet exposes everyone's maturity as independent from their age, and that can be a really good thing to learn for life.
I'm 20, and I've had internet friends that are 13 or 40, people I would never interact with in real life, that at first glance I would dismiss. When I was 17, one of my best internet friends was a 12 year old from Australia. She is the same age as my sister, who at the time I barely talked to without being awkward. Over the internet, it doesn't matter. You can focus on what someone is saying rather than how they look. I'm not trying to say that I'm ageist, just that we're more or less hard-wired to seek out our peer group, and this is stronger the younger we are.
As for the internet's effect on maturity itself... Well, I was already pretty mature when I joined it at 13, and I've pretty much always typed the way I do. I'm consciously trying to quit using emoticons so much, even though I love them... But that's a habit the internet obviously got me into in the first place.
I'm 20, and I've had internet friends that are 13 or 40, people I would never interact with in real life, that at first glance I would dismiss. When I was 17, one of my best internet friends was a 12 year old from Australia. She is the same age as my sister, who at the time I barely talked to without being awkward. Over the internet, it doesn't matter. You can focus on what someone is saying rather than how they look. I'm not trying to say that I'm ageist, just that we're more or less hard-wired to seek out our peer group, and this is stronger the younger we are.
As for the internet's effect on maturity itself... Well, I was already pretty mature when I joined it at 13, and I've pretty much always typed the way I do. I'm consciously trying to quit using emoticons so much, even though I love them... But that's a habit the internet obviously got me into in the first place.