Failures to Launch and Boomerang Kids: Contemporary Determinants of Leaving and Returning to the Parental Home

Scott J. South, University at Albany, State University of New York (SUNY)
Lei Lei, University at Albany, State University of New York (SUNY)

The percentage of young adults remaining in their parental home has increased markedly over recent years, but we know little about how sociodemographic, life-course, and parental characteristics facilitate or impede home-leaving among young adults, and we know even less about how these factors affect the likelihood that young adults return to the parental home after living independently. Using a new data resource—the Panel Study of Income Dynamics’ Transition into Adulthood (PSID-TA) project—this study examines the determinants of leaving and returning home among American youth who turned age 18 between 2005 and 2011. Discrete-time event history methods will be used to explore the influence of young adults’ sociodemographic characteristics, life-course transitions, closeness to parents, financial transfer, and parental characteristics on the risk of moving out of and back into the parental home. Additional attention will be paid to the facilitating effect of unexpected shocks and victimization experiences on home-returning.