“Immaturity” is failed developmental maturation—an incredibly complex concatenation of biological, individual, and social interactions that are well described but poorly understood. Maturation proceeds along both functional and relational dimensions. Functionally, children proceed from utter helplessness toward mastery/competency, from immediate gratification to the frustrations of long-term planning, and from multiple untapped potentials to a focused personal identity. Socially, they proceed from passive to active control, from excuse to increasing responsibility, and from entitlement to reciprocity. These progressions are all desirable, but perilous. Active control can fail. Failed responsibility can evoke humiliating shame or punitive guilt. Failed reciprocity can mean relationship disaster. In summary, it’s “Grow up only at your own risk!” There’s always pull to go backwards, “regression under stress.”
A whole society can be considered “immature” either in proportion to the number of immature individuals within it, or
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