Frank Furstenberg, a sociology professor, believes the phenomenon of 20-somethings (20岁 左右的年轻人) living at home is part of a much larger shift in society that has been going on for almost 50 years. “In the middle of the last century, people went into marriage and set up their own household.” Today, education has become a lengthier (更为冗长的) process. People cannot just enter the labor force (劳动大军) and form a family in their late teens or early 20s. It requires more skills and more material resources than was the case a half century ago, Furstenberg said.
However, fear of joblessness is not the only factor that sends graduates back home. Debt, divorce or simply an attachment (依恋) to the comforts of a ready-made home and a large savings account are other factors.
“It’s so time-consuming if you don’t live with your parents and you have to do your own laundry and cooking and cleaning. Staying at home allows you to save up money,” said Bob Hayes, 25, who has lived at home throughout college and two years of graduate school.
Another factor that keeps many young adults at home is their dislike for the alternative. House-sharing can bring problems of co-tenants (合租人) not paying for their share of the rent and putting up with others’ living habits.
Some critics counter (反对) by saying that haggling over (讨价还价) the rent and struggling to make ends meet in a shabby (破旧的) apartment are necessary steps in the growing-up ladder. However, young adults who stay at home disagree. “I feel it’s possible to establish yourself even with your parents,” said Hayes. In fact, Hayes and most of the live-at-home young adults in the US are sharing the expense as well as household chores with their parents.