Age for adulthood

Former Member

Hello everyone I would like to ask whether the age of adulthood should be lowered to age 16 or 13 or even 14 years of age in all countries including this country as I would like for the age of adulthood to be lowered because of lots of issues affecting young people still today and because teenagers should not be treated as children anymore but as young adults that they are now?

independent_

I don’t feel like an adult yet and legally I should be I personally think 18 (or at its lowest, 16) is about right. In many ways, a 13 or 14 year old is still a child and should have the protections that children have.

16 is a good transitional age where I do think young people should be treated more like adults, but they still have an element of protection by the law until they’re 18.

Former Member

independent_ wrote: »

I don’t feel like an adult yet and legally I should be I personally think 18 (or at its lowest, 16) is about right. In many ways, a 13 or 14 year old is still a child and should have the protections that children have.

16 is a good transitional age where I do think young people should be treated more like adults, but they still have an element of protection by the law until they’re 18.

Teenagers aged from 13-15 years of age are not children and therefore should be treated as adults even though we all need protection from severe harm and death no matter what age we are and you are right 16 years of age would be a very good age to be legally recognized as an adult I definitely agree with you on that but sorry I still would like the age for being an adult to be lowered to age 13 or 14 years old in this country and in all other countries too Independent.😉👍

JustV

Just a note to say I moved this to Politics & Debate

Former Member

Its a tricky one for me,
If I look back at 13 year old me I would not trust them with certain decisions. I didn't know what I was doing, I was a bit immature, and I definitely wasn't mentally ready.

Even now I am still learning and finding my way through adulthood. I also wonder if calling 13 year olds and up adults would add extra pressure to them? On top of school and changing and growing that might be a little much

On top of GCSE prep you may have to add extra stuff to the curriculum to help them which add on more learning and pressure. They already go through enough stress trying to get good grades and please their parents/guardians, I think their teens should be reserved for fun! ❤️

Aidan makes a good point too, if we were changing the age to 13, would things change regarding driving? Drinking/smoking? Relationships?

I'm interested in your opinion on all this

Former Member

I heard of it being made higher more often than not XP because of extended adolescence.

Though if u are talking of legally like voting rights for 16 year olds I guess that's been talked about but imo 18 is a better age for that. And some countries u have to be 20 or 21 for alcohol still its like part cultural I guess though there are things like how developed is your brain to consider. Learning to drive earlier might be good though just for the skill but I think technically you can go on tracks or something. Even in cultures that push independence and that, going to school alone cooking urself they still dont usually think of adulthood that low. I think youth can do more than they think but there are limits and they are not always ready for certain things, sometimes physically too. It also depends on the individual whether they are ready.

I think a lot of the countries who think adulthood is very low are in less developed countries (not saying their way of life is worse or better necessarily ofc..) less time in school married early etc.

AislingDM

This is a really interesting and important question @Sholay09 ! And I especially see your point about young people from like 13ish being treated in quite patronising ways (e.g., by healthcare professionals when mental health needs are not taken seriously). And I guess it depends what you define adulthood to be and mean in your own world/head like ofc nothing magical happens over night when you turn 18 to make you 'an adult' which is why I think sometimes legal definitions are not our best way to conceptualise adulthood. It is this idea of what do you think a person under 18 might be 'ready' for and truly I don't have an answer beyond what I remember being ready for back then/what I hated being patronised about. I think regardless of official legal definitions and activities (like voting in elections) young people's voices should be present in most conversations, because most topics impact them just as much as they do adults.

Really grateful to hear everyone's perspectives on this

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Former Member

@Sholay09 I would have to say why 18 is seen as the age of adulthood but that is of course, individual. You would need to take in a person's past circumstances, education etc which show how mature they are because some 20 year olds are unable to account for their finances or cannot complete tasks such as cooking for themselves, whereas some 12 year olds can. Generally 18 is seen as the age of adulthood, as it is when most people leave home, are allowed to participate in previously restricted activities (drinking, gambling). This is also when they can take control of their new freedom by opening up an individual bank account. I understand that sometimes children as young as 13 or 14 are treated like adults but at times, 20 year olds are treated patronisingly (mostly by older generations). You raise some good ideas and I'm seeing some very interesting discussions taking place here!