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, it 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.

Many studies have found that Black children are more likely to receive discipline from authority figures, such as police officers and teachers. Black children are also overlooked or their intentions are misrepresented in healthcare settings, contributing to "medical mistrust" in the Black community. Scholars from the Georgetown Law Center on Poverty and Law have argued that adultification bias can trace its roots to slavery and stereotypes of African Americans. Adultification bias can affect the language used when describing children or adolescences of minority groups in the media. This bias may perpetuate the school-to-prison pipeline.

Educators and authority figures can address adultification bias by improving their cultural competence and communication.