If the majority is set in France at 18, adolescents would not really feel adults until years later.
At what age do you become an adult? To this question, most people would tend to answer 18 years old, the age of the civil majority. Indeed, it is at this age that we consider that a youngster becomes fully responsible for his actions, in the eyes of the law. At 18, the person obtains the right to vote, the right to marry, to acquire real estate and even to buy alcohol. In other words, it is no longer necessary to obtain the agreement of his parents to advance in life. However, it was not at the age of 18 that a youngster feels “adult”. According to a study published in 2009 in the Journal of Adolescent Health, at this age, the brain has not fully completed its growth.
Another American study, conducted with 2,000 people by Talker Research on Behalf of Life Happens, shows that 56% of young people believe that becoming an adult means being able to settle your bills. For 47% of respondents, the transition to adulthood is done when you buy real estate or when it becomes financially autonomous (45%). Leaving the family home and having children is also one of the criteria of the Zing Z, which tends to put a certain pressure. Because with the elongation of studies, later marriages as well as the age of maternity that moves back, young people seem to feel truly adults more and later.
Indeed, according to the study, the Gen Z would feel adult around 27 years old. The age at which young people are generally stable in their lives and especially financially independent: they live alone, have found a job, and can afford to do projects.
Of course, each young person having received a different education can feel “adult” more or less young. This explains why some leave the family home as soon as they obtain the baccalaureate, to continue their studies, while others prefer to stay, a little, pampered at Papa and Maman. The whole thing is to be ready to get into life, and that everyone finds their balance.