In the history of social sciences, there has been a constant interest on youth and young people. An interest that has been particularly sensitive to the ideological and normative representations of this emergent social category. Looking at the way sociology has treated this social group and exploring further the issue of transitions to adulthood, it is thus possible to reflect upon another important debate, crosscutting to social sciences, and its respective conceptual framework. I.E.: the fact that autonomy is depicted simultaneously as a central norm in contemporary ethical landscapes and as a social process experienced by subjects that try to reach it. From autonomy as a concept towards sociological apprehension of individuation trajectories, a brief reflexive trail is proposed