A plurality say children should be held responsible at age 9 or older
Core finding
The largest share of Americans (31%) put the age at which children should be held responsible for their actions at 9 or older, according to a Verasight survey conducted Feb. 28 to March 6, 2025.
Younger answers trail: 17% say 6 and 15% say 5, while every remaining age draws 12% or less.
Topline distribution
A plurality say children should be held responsible at age 9 or older.
At what age do you believe children should be held responsible for their actions?
n = 1,000 · Feb 28 – Mar 6, 2025 · MoE ±3.5%
Methodology
Full methodology →| Mode | Verasight panel recruited via random address-based sampling, random person-to-person text messaging, and dynamic online targeting |
|---|---|
| Population | United States adults |
| Field dates | Feb 28 – Mar 6, 2025 |
| Base (unweighted) | 1,000 |
| Margin of error | ±3.5% |
| Module | identity |
| Sponsor | Verasight |
| Weight variable | weight |
| Weighting targets | age, race/ethnicity, sex, income, education, region, metropolitan status |
Sources
- verasight-spsp-2025.tiiny.co
At what age do you believe children should be held responsible for their actions?
Cite this question
Verasight SPSP Omnibus Survey #2025-010, fielded February 28-March 6, 2025, N=1,000 United States adults, +/- 3.5%.