The emotional development of men.

Neuroscientists at Harvard University have used MRI imaging to examine how emotion is processed in the brains of children. In pre-adolescent children, the scientists found that emotional activity occurred in the area of the brain called the amygdala.

The amygdala is where we process our emotions like affection or anxiety, as well as being the center for identification of danger, leading to a “fight or flight” response. Put another way, if the amygdala is damaged, a person might become indifferent to danger, or be able to recognize someone, but then not be able to decide if he likes him or her.

However, to be able to express why you feel an emotion, you must engage the cerebral cortex – the portion of the brain that plays a key part in thought and language. It is not until adolescence that brain activity associated with emotion moves up to the cerebral cortex. But this only happens in girls’ brains.

This means that you could ask a 7 year old why she is feeling sad, but she couldn’t really tell you. Conversely, an 18 year old would be able to explain what she is feeling and why in great detail. But only if she was a girl.

Another recent study shows that this continues to be the pattern in adulthood. For women, the majority of brain activity associated with emotions is in the cerebral cortex, while men’s emotional processing still happens in the amydgala.

The conclusion? Asking a 35 year old male to talk about his feelings (everyone has feelings, of course, but young children and men may have a more difficult time finding the language to talk about them) can be about as productive as asking a 7 year old to do the same thing.

­-posted by Miss Analiisa, who is going to try and remember this information and not bug her 11 year old son or her 44 year old husband about exactly what they are feeling or why.