When are you an Adult?

Adulthood is a culturally driven phase of life. Different people reach adulthood at different times. Legally, adulthood begins when a person turns 18. That is when you get all of the rights of an adult. Different families see it differently. I think that adulthood starts with responsibility. A person is considered to be an adult when he/she has taken on the responsibility of taking care of him/herself. It is very possible for a 16 year old to not have the legal rights of an adult but be considered an adult if that person is living on their own, working at a job, paying their own bills and taking care of themselves without the help of their parents. It is also possible for a 30 year old to still live at home, not contribute to the house financially and not have any responsibility in the home. I would not consider this person to be an adult. Then there is everything in between. That is where early adulthood comes it. Early adulthood is the transition between being a fully dependent child that has your parents making all the decisions for you and taking care of you, to being an adult that makes all of the decisions for yourself and takes care of yourself. This transition lasts different lengths of time for just about everybody. And everyone’s situation is unique.

Amanda Tompkins