What exactly is it? Someone emotionally immature will find it hard to effectively communicate or process their emotions and can often appear selfish or aloof.
Immature people only appear to care about themselves. They dislike compromise and don't want to take other people's ideas into account. They always want to have their own way.
Immaturity takes many forms — always deflecting blame, picking fights, or passive aggressiveness, for example — and it can often have real, interpersonal consequences, and can even ruin your relationships with friends, family, and partners.
Immature personality disorder (IPD) was a type of personality disorder diagnosis. It is characterized by lack of emotional development, low tolerance of stress and anxiety, inability to accept personal responsibility, and reliance on age-inappropriate defense mechanisms.
Be on the lookout for these key signs of immaturity: An inability to communicate kindly, honestly, and effectively. An unwillingness to take personal responsibility (e.g., a refusal to make heartfelt apologies). A lack of emotional regulation, such as being hot-tempered or prone to tantrums.
You'll feel this way because an emotionally immature person does not have the capacity internally to be there for your feelings. They lack the ability to have empathy for how you are feeling, so they will dismiss, criticize, or analyze your feelings rather than acknowledge and validate your emotions.
They Do Not Empathize – An emotionally immature person does not empathize with others' emotions and feelings. It is about fulfilling their needs, and they seldom apologize for hurting people with their actions or words.
Narcissism is an extreme form of emotional immaturity. It exists on a spectrum. The narcissistic label is often applied to run-of-the-mill emotional immaturity.
A person with BPD has characteristics that go beyond emotional immaturity. The intense emotional reactions of a person with BPD are felt deeply, and their outbursts aren't being done to manipulate others or to get a reaction out of them.
Emotionally immature people may lack emotional sensitivity, behave in a self-preoccupied manner, and may cause you to question reality. You may find communication difficult to even impossible. Therefore, it is important to acknowledge and recognize the signs so you can deal with them accordingly.
Four types of emotionally immature parents are described: Emotional/anxious, driven/perfectionist, passive/avoidant, rejecting/mean.
There is no significant difference in emotional maturity among ADHD and normal children.
Regression: A popular but frequently forgotten defense mechanism is a regression. When things get too difficult and a person feels vulnerable, defense mechanisms kick in as a way of self-preservation. Regression is a return to childlike behavior as a way to avoid adult-like reality and responsibility.
Can Emotionally Immature People Change Over Time? Without a doubt, the answer to this question is yes. They can. But it's important to remember that just because he CAN doesn't mean he WILL.
Some conditions may play a role in a lack of empathy such as narcissistic personality disorder (NPD), antisocial personality disorder, and borderline personality disorder (BPD).
Women reach full emotional maturity around age 32, while men finish maturing around age 43.
As we've discussed, unfortunately, many people with ADHD tend to have a lack of empathy. This can be addressed, though, through identifying and communicating about each other's feelings. If you see a disconnect between ADHD and empathy in your child or in your spouse, don't give up hope.
Under most laws, young people are recognized as adults at age 18. But emerging science about brain development suggests that most people don't reach full maturity until the age 25.
They're dismissive or overwhelmed when the child has an emotional need. They're not interested in the child's life (interests, friend groups, school work). They have difficulty expressing their feelings, even with adults. They're unable or unwilling to provide comfort during emotional distress.
Emotionally absent or cold mothers can be unresponsive to their children's needs. They may act distracted and uninterested during interactions, or they could actively reject any attempts of the child to get close. They may continue acting this way with adult children.
The damage caused by emotionally immature parents
And that emotional loneliness can have an impact on your sense of self, sense of happiness, and on your ability to connect to others. For many people, that emotional loneliness will carry over into their adult relationships.
The Root Cause
More often than not, emotional immaturity arises because of either: An inability to communicate with others, which leaves them feeling misunderstood. A lack of self-control, and an inability to control their emotions. An inability to read a room or situation, which leaves them acting inappropriately.
Having quiet borderline personality disorder (BPD) — aka “high-functioning” BPD — means that you often direct thoughts and feelings inward rather than outward. As a result, you may experience the intense, turbulent thoughts, emotions, and behaviors that characterize BPD, but you try to hide them from others.