how come adults don’t look as ‘mature’ as they used to? I’m told it’s ‘neoteny’ but that answers nothing.

Question

As a millennial, I recognize that us 90’s kids just look like very tall teenagers, where as people our age back 30 to 40 years ago actually LOOKED like they were in their 20’s. Why is this?

In: Other

Answer 1

Looks are very related to generation, not only to age. If someone looks old it’s because they’re from a generation older than you, because secondary characteristics related to their generation are what you identify as old. Meanwhile, you look at younger generations and notice characteristics you associate with being younger, despite whatever age they really are.