Getting older doesn't make people wiser

Films such as 'The Lord of the Rings' and 'Star Wars' often portray the oldest characters as the wisest, but new research suggests that the theory doesn't apply in the real world.

Dr Judith Gluck, a psychologist at the University of Klagenfurt in Austria, has conducted a review of past studies linking age and wisdom and found that "statistical relationships" between the pair are "not strong".

She explained: "Neither growing old nor accumulating life experiences is sufficient for growing wise.

"While many people associate wisdom with advanced age, becoming wise clearly requires more than 'just' growing old."

Dr Gluck argues that people do not become wise over time and are actually shaped by "life experiences".

She said: "Life experiences, rather than time, are instead what results in wisdom development, but then these aren't unique to people of old age.

"Accumulated life experience is an important foundation for wisdom, but not all highly wise individuals are old, and many old individuals are not particularly wise."

For feedback: contact the Editorial Department at onlinefeedback@gleanerjm.com.