The increase in urban violence has led society to charge the State with more severe and punitive measures to solve the problem of juvenile crime. One of the proposals is the reduction of the criminal majority from 18 to 16 years. Discussions on this proposal have been ideologically polarized and instances where the debate is based on reliable scientific evidence are rare. In this research, we try to contribute to identify the implicit social and moral constraints associated with the issue of criminal majority. For this, we designed two experiments to evaluate how socioeconomic factors, sociodemographic factors and the moral development of the individual influence the opinion on the topic. Objective: To verify the relationship between socioeconomic factors, sociodemographic factors and moral development in the opinion about the reduction of the penal majority. Materials and Methods: This is a qualitative and quantitative research with a cross-sectional design that consisted of two experiments: Belem Experiment and Regional Experiment. In the Belém Experiment the data were collected in two public places of the municipality of Belém, Pará, Praça Batista Campos and the Court of Justice of the State of Pará. In the Regional Experiment an on line tool was used with the aim of achieving people from different regions of the Brazilian territory. The sample consisted of individuals older than 18 years of both sex. The instruments used were: (1) Socioeconomic and sociodemographic questionnaire and (2) Dilemma of the adolescent in conflict with the law. Pearson's Chi-square test (χ2) and data mining were used for data analysis. Results: Juvenile court workers display preference for lower stages (stage 1) and a lower level of moral competence (average c-index) (3.97), with a strong adherence to the law, different from the general public that prefers higher stages (stage 6) and c-index (14.29). There was a significant relationship between the stage preference and the opinion of the subjects, only in the juvenile court workers (χ2 = 20,665, df = 10, p = 0.024). However, the former is less in accordance with lowering the age of criminal responsibility than the latter. Conclusion: The accuracy of opinion is greater at the extremes of psychological distance, that is, when the individual is very distant or very close to the reality of this adolescent.
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