11 Apr The Right Age For the First Time

There’s a first time for everything, and usually it’s the children who are pushing the parents. Kids want to grow up. Parents want to keep them little. Still, 92 percent of adults say kids today are growing up too quickly. Harris Poll conducted an online survey of 2,463 U.S. adults aged 18 and over, as well as 510 teens ages 13 to 17, to ask them the age they thought was appropriate for the “first time” for a myriad of experiences.

At what age should kids begin receiving an allowance?
On average, adults agree it should be at age 10.

When should a girl begin wearing makeup?
On average, adults say 15 years old, while teens say 13.

When should a child be allowed to stay home alone?
Adults say 13.5 years old for their children, but admit that, on average, they were allowed to stay home alone when they were 12.5 years old.

When should parents have “the sex talk” with their child?
Parents say they should do it when their child is 12 years old, which is one year younger, on average, than when their parents gave them the sex talk.

When should kids get their own cell phone?
Parents with younger children say age 13 is about right.

When should a teenager be allowed to go on a first date and have a first kiss?
Teens say they are ready at age 16 to go on a one-on-one date, and their parents agree. However, kids say they are ready for their first kiss at age 15, while their parents confess that they were 14.5, on average, when they had their first kiss.

When should a teenager be allowed to go to a concert without a parent?
While the adults answering the question went to their first concert at age 18, on average, they say their kids are ready at a younger age, 16.5 years old.

When are teenagers ready to see an R-rated movie?
Teens say they are ready at 16.5 years old (never mind that the definition of an R-rated movie is 17 or older unless accompanied by a parent), while their parents say 17 and their grandparents say 18!