The presentation will review the key findings from our recent work investigating changes over the past two decades in the living arrangements of young adults, before describing some initial results from current work using the British Household Panel Survey.
Much attention has focussed on the de-standardization and delay of transitions to adulthood in contemporary society, in particular the timing of leaving the parental home, partnership and parenthood. We present evidence to suggest that young adults are increasingly likely to either be living with their parents, or to be living in non-family households. We argue that these changes reflect the expansion of higher education and increased possibilities for exploration of different living arrangements, but also result from increased economic and housing uncertainty among less advantaged young adults. The importance of considering gender and migration status are also highlighted. The second half of the presentation will focus on our current work which uses data from the British Household Panel Survey to quantify the changing dynamics of leaving and returning to the parental home in Britain. We have begun by focusing on the process of leaving the parental home. Specific research questions we aim to address include: How are individual and parental resources associated with movement out of the parental home? How do these factors vary according to gender and socio-economic background? Does type of parental family structure have any independent impact on the speed of departure? The work aims to extends previous research e.g. by Assave, Ermisch, Francesconi, and Iacovou by comparing cohorts of young adults in the early 1990s, late 1990s and 2000s.
Presented by:
Ann Berrington (University of Southampton)
Date & time:
17 May 2010 15:00 pm - 17 May 2010 16:30 pm
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