Chapter 2

Failure to Launch: Cross-National Trends in the Transition to Economic Independence, by Lisa Bell, Gary Burtless, Janet Gornick, and Timothy M. Smeeding

Between the mid-1980s and 2000 in Belgium, Canada, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom, and the United States, it became increasingly difficult for young men (aged 18-24) and women in their early 20s to be economically self-sufficient. Women in their late 20s and early 30s, however, saw somewhat improved prospects for economic independence, albeit they were starting from point that was well below that among men of the same age. U.S. young adults made larger gains or smaller losses in economic self-sufficiency than experienced by their counterparts in Europe. [Bell et al. chapter] [Bell et al. brief]

Is the Company Man an Anachronism? Trends in Long Term Employment, 1973-2005, by Henry Farber

Farber examines changes in the incidence of long-term employment in the United States between 1973 and 2005.  He finds that, as expected, young people today can expect more churn in their careers and shorter tenures with their employers.  The decline in tenure is more pronounced for men; women’s tenures started below men’s and have remained relatively constant throughout the time period.  He finds that shifts in the nature of jobs in the U.S. , an increase in college educated workers, and increased immigration have all contributed to the trend. [Farber chapter] [Farber brief]

Health Insurance and the Transition to Financial Adulthood, by Helen Levy

Nearly one in six Americans had no health insurance in 2005, one-half of whom were between ages 18 and 34. Levy examines whether the reason for this high rate of uninsurance is because of job instability and other financial situations at that age, or whether insurance markets are of sync with needs. Young adults, for example, who are relatively healthy, may face overly high prices for insurance because community rating requirements may limit insurers’ ability to vary premiums by individuals, resulting in lower demand for coverage. Or insurers may have less information than consumers about risk. [Levy chapter] [Levy brief]

Part 2. Why Are Young People Living with Their Parents Longer and Starting Families Later?

Blurring the Boundary: Changes in the Transition from College Participation to Adulthood, by Maria D. Fitzpatrick and Sarah E. Turner

The face of a college student today has changed. Not only are more women in the classroom, but more students are juggling work and family, taking time out to work and save money, or beginning their college career later in life. The authors examine a few of the causes behind this changing face of college. [Fitzpatrick / Turner chapter] [Fitzpatrick / Turner brief]

Labor Market Experiences and Transitions to Adulthood, by Carolyn J. Hill and Harry Holzer

The authors find that, at least for the period 1984-2002, employment and wages explain actually very little of the trend toward living at home and delaying marriage among 20–22-year-olds. Although declining wages are certainly linked to an increasing tendency of youth to live at home, it is not the only, nor a particularly strong factor driving the decision. Productive behavior in high school, as reflected in grades, few risky behaviors, and stronger future goals, tends to better explain living arrangements and marriage trends, and college attendance finds youth living at home longer—although even these factors do not help explain much of the changes. [Hill / Holzer chapter] [Hill / Holzer brief]

Part 3. Opportunities and Barriers: Education, Debt, and Crime

Young Adults Leaving the Nest: The Role of Cost-of-Living , by Aaron S. Yelowitz

Yelowitz examines the role that housing costs have played in the increasing numbers of young adults living with parents. He finds that, although housing and rental costs have certainly become more important to the decision to return home, they can explain perhaps 15 percent of the total change in independent living arrangements between 1980 and 2000. Transportation costs played a larger role. However, as he notes, the housing boom and skyrocketing prices did not really take off until after 2000, the year his data end. [Yelowitz chapter] [Yelowitz brief]

Sticking Around: Delayed Departure from the Parental Nest in Western Europe, by Katherine Newman and Sofya Aptekar

Looking to Europe, the authors find that employment and unemployment benefit policies that protect older workers at the expense of new entrants to the labor market make it harder for young adults to move out of their family homes. Housing markets play a key role in the pattern of home leaving as well. [Newman / Aptekar chapter] [Newman / Aptekar brief]

To Have and To Hold: An Analysis of Young Adult Debt, by Ngina S. Chiteji

Chiteji examines how much debt today’s young adults are carrying and how their debt compares to those of others in the nation and to young adults from previous generations. Somewhat surprisingly, she finds little evidence that today’s young adults are unusually debt-burdened. In fact, their debt appears remarkably similar to that of other families in the nation, and to young adults of the past. [Chiteji chapter] [Chiteji brief]

Part 4: Other Factors Affecting the Transition to Adulthood: Family Background and Incarceration

Family Background and Children’s Transition to Adulthood over Time, by Melanie Guldi, Marianne E. Page, and Ann Huff Stevens

The authors examine whether the importance of family background (parents’ income and education) to a young adult's future successes has changed since the 1970s. They find that the likelihood of a successful transition to adulthood differs markedly parental family income and education, and there is little evidence that the influence of family income has changed over time. The link between parents’ education and their children’s education levels has become stronger over time. This is in marked contrast to the lack of a significant change between parental education and the next generation’s income, and is somewhat surprising given the large increases in the wage returns to schooling that took place over this period. [Guldi et al. chapter] [Guldi et al. brief]

Early Incarceration Spells and the Transition to Adulthood, by Steven Raphael

The escalating rate of incarceration in the last decade has taken its toll on young men, especially young minority men. Raphael looks carefully at how the effects of having served time on conventional measures of the transition to adulthood among young men. [Raphael chapter] [Raphael brief]