Few experiences are as universal — and as personal — as growing up. The Growing Up in Ireland study, which has tracked over 20,000 young people since 2008, offers a rare chance to compare private questions against real national data, and this article walks through what growing up really means, when it gets hard, and what the evidence says.

4 related posts

Study name: Growing Up in Ireland ·
Start year: 2008 ·
Lead agency: Department of Children, Disability and Equality ·
Research partner: ESRI ·
Data collection method: Longitudinal surveys

Quick snapshot

1Definition of Growing Up
2Parenting Through Growing Up
3Gen Z and Growing Up Delays
4Growing Up in Ireland Study

The table below summarizes the core design of the study at a glance.

Six facts that sum up the study’s design at a glance.
Attribute Value
Study name Growing Up in Ireland
Start year 2008
Lead agency Department of Children, Disability and Equality
Research partner ESRI
Data collection method Longitudinal surveys
Number of cohorts Two (infant and child)

What is the meaning of growing up?

What is called growing up?

  • Growing up describes the process of physical, emotional, and social maturation from childhood into adulthood. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines it as “the process of becoming an adult.”
  • The American Psychological Association (developmental psychology authority) frames growing up as a series of developmental stages that include cognitive, emotional, and social growth.
The upshot

Growing up is not a single event but a layered transition that touches every part of a person’s life. The definition shifts depending on whether you are looking at biology, psychology, or culture.

What is another word for growing up?

The implication: language reflects the fact that growing up means different things in different contexts — a biological maturation, a social milestone, or a personal journey.

Takeaway

Parents and educators should recognize that growing up is multidimensional; supporting a child’s physical, emotional, and social development requires separate tools.

Do I need to grow up?

What does it mean to be grown up?

  • Being grown up is subjective and often tied to responsibility. The Pew Research Center notes that many young adults consider financial independence, leaving home, and forming a family as markers of adulthood.
  • Not everyone follows the same timeline. Cultural expectations vary, and personal definitions of “grown up” differ widely across generations.

How to know if you need to grow up?

  • Psychologists suggest that feeling stuck in patterns of dependency or avoiding responsibility may signal a need to shift. The APA (mental health research body) points to delayed independence as a growing concern among young adults.
What to watch

The question “Do I need to grow up?” is often less about age and more about autonomy. People who feel they lack control over their own decisions may benefit from small, concrete steps toward self-reliance.

The pattern: growing up, as a personal choice, is less about reaching a certain age and more about taking ownership of your life.

What do you do when your kids grow up?

What is the 3-3-3 rule for kids?

  • The 3-3-3 rule is a parenting strategy: give your child 3 tasks to complete in 3 hours, then take 3 minutes to check in. It is designed to build independence and time management skills. Resources from CDC Parenting (child development authority) emphasize routines and clear expectations for fostering self-regulation.

What age is the hardest growing up?

  • Parents often cite ages 2, 8, and 12 as particularly challenging. The “terrible twos” are well known, while age 8 coincides with growing social awareness and age 12 with the start of adolescence. The CDC (developmental milestones reference) outlines distinct challenges at each stage.
The catch

Every child is different, but the data suggests that transitions — from toddlerhood to childhood, and from childhood to adolescence — are when parents feel the least prepared.

What this means: knowing which ages tend to be toughest helps parents prepare emotionally and practically for the friction points.

Why isn’t Gen Z growing up?

What factors delay growing up in Gen Z?

  • Gen Z faces economic pressures including high student debt and rising housing costs. Pew Research Center reports that only 23% of 18-to-29-year-olds in the U.S. are married, and homeownership rates have dropped significantly compared to previous generations.
  • Delayed milestones such as marriage, parenthood, and homeownership are partly a response to financial instability rather than a lack of ambition.

How does technology affect growing up?

  • Constant connectivity and social media create both opportunities and pressures. The APA (psychological research institute) notes that heavy social media use is linked to increased anxiety and delayed real-world social skill development among teens.
  • Technology also offers learning tools and community, but the net effect on maturity milestones remains an open question.
The trade-off

Gen Z may be taking longer to reach traditional adult milestones, but that delay is not necessarily failure. The economic landscape they face is fundamentally different from what previous generations experienced.

The implication: what looks like “not growing up” may be a rational adaptation to a world where stability takes longer to achieve.

For more context on how modern pressures shape identity, see also Jaden Smith: Gender Identity, Health, and Family in Focus.

What is the Growing Up in Ireland study?

How is the Growing Up in Ireland survey conducted?

  • The study is a national longitudinal project jointly carried out by the Department of Children, Disability and Equality and the Central Statistics Office (government research body) since January 2023, funded by the Government of Ireland.
  • It tracks two cohorts: Cohort ’98 (children aged 9 in 2007) and Cohort ’08 (infants aged 9 months in 2008). The ESRI (economic and social research institute) describes the study as nationally representative with over 20,000 cohort members.
  • The child cohort was selected through the national primary school system, and data is collected from parents, teachers, principals, and the children themselves (Growing Up in Ireland methodology report).
  • A new cohort, Cohort ’24, launched in September 2024, inviting families with 9-month-old babies to participate (Growing Up in Ireland official site).

What are the key findings of the study?

  • The founding objectives include describing children’s lives, charting development over time, and identifying factors that help or hinder development (Growing Up in Ireland study documentation).
  • The infant cohort had 7,563 children and families participate across the 9-month, 3-year, 5-year, and 9-year waves (Trinity College Dublin (academic research partner)).
  • Early Childhood Ireland (advocacy and research body) notes the child cohort was 20 years old in the latest data collection and the infant cohort was 9 years old.
Why this matters

The Growing Up in Ireland study provides policymakers with an evidence base spanning infancy to young adulthood. Its longitudinal design captures how early childhood experiences shape life outcomes — a perspective no single snapshot can offer.

The pattern: the study’s real value is not just in the data points but in the connections it draws between early circumstances and later results.

Key takeaway for policymakers

The study’s decades-long tracking gives Ireland a unique empirical foundation to target interventions where early disadvantage compounds into later inequality.

Timeline signal

  • 2008 — Growing Up in Ireland study begins, recruiting Cohort ’08 (infants aged 9 months) (Growing Up in Ireland study chronology)
  • 2011 — First major data collection wave completed
  • Ongoing — Continued longitudinal tracking and reporting, with Cohort ’24 launched in September 2024

The trade-off: longitudinal studies give depth, but they take decades to produce results. The Cohort ’08 data only became fully useful when those children reached school age.

What We Know and What Remains Unclear

Confirmed facts

  • Growing up involves multidimensional maturation — physical, emotional, social (APA (developmental psychology authority))
  • The Growing Up in Ireland study is a national longitudinal study tracking over 20,000 participants (ESRI (research institute))
  • The 3-3-3 rule is a parenting strategy for building independence
  • Ages 2, 8, and 12 are commonly considered challenging parenting ages (CDC (child development authority))

What’s unclear

  • Why some individuals delay growing up compared to others — factors are complex and not fully measured
  • The exact impact of technology on the growing up process (APA (ongoing research))
  • How growing up definitions vary across different cultures in measurable ways
  • Whether delayed adulthood among Gen Z is a permanent shift or a temporary economic adaptation

The combination of confirmed data and acknowledged unknowns gives a balanced view for anyone navigating the concept.

Voices on Growing Up

“The Growing Up in Ireland study has provided Government with an evidence base since 2006, informing policy on children, young people, and families.”

— Growing Up in Ireland, official website (government research program)

“I always thought growing up meant having everything figured out. Now I realize it is just learning to handle things you never expected.”

— Reddit user, r/AskReddit discussion on adulthood

“The study’s primary aim is to inform Government policy in relation to children, young people, and families — and to create a data bank on the whole child.”

— Growing Up in Ireland, study objectives (government documentation)

The pattern across these voices: growing up is both a personal struggle and a policy question. The data from the study gives structure to what many experience privately.

For parents, educators, and policymakers in Ireland, the choice is clear: use the evidence from studies like Growing Up in Ireland to support children through each stage, or leave families to navigate the hardest years alone. The data exists — the question is whether it will shape the support systems families actually need.

Related reading: Happy Life Happy: Unpacking the Phrase & 4 Key Frameworks · Jaden Smith: Gender Identity, Health, and Family in Focus

Additional sources

growingup.ie, aei.pitt.edu, growingup.gov.ie, cso.ie, growingup.ie, youtube.com, drugsandalcohol.ie, esri.ie

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Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between growing up and maturity?

Growing up refers to the process of becoming an adult, while maturity is the quality of behaving in a responsible and emotionally balanced way. A person can be grown up in age but not yet mature, or vice versa.

How can parents support healthy growing up?

Parents can support healthy development by providing structure, encouraging independence, maintaining open communication, and adapting their approach as children move through different developmental stages.

What are the signs that a child is growing up well?

Signs include increasing responsibility, emotional regulation, curiosity, healthy social relationships, and the ability to handle age-appropriate challenges.

Does the Growing Up in Ireland study have data on mental health?

Yes, the study collects data on children’s emotional well-being, mental health, and social development across multiple waves, providing a rich resource for understanding psychological outcomes.

How does culture affect the definition of growing up?

Different cultures mark adulthood with different milestones — some emphasize economic independence, others stress family responsibilities or community participation. The definition of growing up is not universal.

What role does education play in growing up?

Education provides cognitive skills, social exposure, and a structured path toward independence. The Growing Up in Ireland study tracks educational outcomes alongside family and health data to understand how schooling shapes development.

Is it normal to feel like you haven’t grown up yet in your 20s?

Yes. Many young adults report feeling “in between” — financially partial, emotionally developing, and still figuring out their identity. This is increasingly common across generations, especially given economic pressures.