Age Of Responsibility

The definition of responsibility varies from person to person. For some people, responsibility means to be in control of your actions and choices. For others, responsibility is equivalent to reaching maturity and adulthood. The age of responsibility is often referred to in law as the ‘Age of Majority’ or ‘Age of Adulthood’, and it has been a curious topic from day one. There have been many issues in selecting one specific age to designate as the ‘Age of Majority’. Even though the human brain is finished developing at the age of 25, there truly is no age of responsibility due to confusion brought on by laws, the overwhelming amount of evidence to support a multitude of different ages, and the knowledge that every individual’s brain develops

One example of this can be observed through the University of Rochester Medical Center, where it was found, “The rational part of a teen’s brain isn’t fully developed and won’t be until age 25.” This means that the human brain is continually developing and changing until the age of 25, and this has caused many people to argue that the age of responsibility must be 25. However, others might argue that the true age of majority is actually 20 due to religious beliefs. As stated by Pastor Matthew Norville Sr. from the Batavia Christian Center, “According to the Word of God, a person becomes an adult when they reach the age of 20 (twenty).” This offers a very different perspective on the age of adulthood, as represented by religious beliefs. For many people, this is an effective argument and sufficiently supports the idea that the age of adulthood is 20. This concept is combated with another, somewhat older concept of adulthood. Coming of age ceremonies are also common signifiers that a young adult has reached the age of responsibility, as demonstrated by the Khatam al-Koran tradition in Malaysia. According to an article by Global Citizen, “In Malaysia, 11 is a special birthday for some Muslim girls, as it marks the time when they can celebrate Khatam Al Koran, a prestigious ritual that demonstrates their growing maturity at their local mosque.” This tradition is an integral part of a young Malaysian woman’s life, and it represents their version of reaching the age of responsibility. These all serve to prove that there is no true age of responsibility because there are simply too many possibilities. The idea of what makes an adult varies throughout religions, cultures, and scientific discoveries, and there are simply too many different ages with strong support behind them for a single age to be the