adultification

Adultification is a term used in psychology and sociology to describe the manner in which some children are treated by adults as being more mature than they actually are—such as when they are expected to take on age-inappropriate adult roles and responsibilities as children, and when they are taken to be as culpable as adults for any crime or wrongdoing.

In the United States, adultification is often used to refer to a form of racial bias, whereby black American children are assumed to be more culpable, and punished more harshly than white children, for the same offences done at the same age.

by Emotional Cruiser October 21, 2025