Meaning of adultoid | Babel Free

Definitions

1. A premature adult form of an insect.
2. An adolescent who engages in activities that symbolize adult status.

Examples

“An adultoid is a mature alate that remains in the colony, sheds its wings and becomes a functional reproductive.”

“Greenberger and Steinberg coined the term “adultoid” to describe⟳ adolescents who engage⟳ in activities, often “risky” activities, that symbolize adult status (e.g., smoking, drinking, staying out late, having sex).”

“This link⟳ between an older subjective age and engagement in problem behaviors supports the existence of adultoid or pseudomature adolescents who have⟳ been described in theoretical literature, but until recently, remained unidentified empirically.”

“Personal conversations I had with teachers/counsellors in different high schools responsible for overseeing RAP certainly indicated that, at least initially, students' confidence about their newly discovered sense⟳ of maturity was closer to pseudomaturity or adultoid behaviour.”

CEFR level