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August 3 - August 10,2003 |
Adult Adolescence in Full Swing
Italian-Canadian parents see resurgence of boomerang kids who move back home
By Peter Criscione
Originally Published: 2003-07-27
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Maria Gentile and her 26-year-old son Antonio
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Maria Gentile wouldn't exactly say she minds the idea of having her two adult children around the house for a few more years.
Like most parents, her and husband Francesco want to help their children succeed in their goals, even if it means placing their own dreams on hold for a little while longer.
"Maybe it's a part of our culture, a part of being Italian," she says. "My husband and I want to make sure our kids have a solid foot on the ground before they get out on their own."
Although Italians are known for encouraging "longer gestation periods" the Gentile family is just one example of a trans-cultural phenomenon taking centre stage in Canadian society.
A rapidly growing number of young adults or "twenty some-things" are choosing to delay their departure from the nest so to speak.
They are commonly referred to as adult adolescence, or boomerang kids, and now rank in the millions.
Numbers gathered by the Canadian Census of 2001, show the percentage of young adults still living with their parents has increased steadily since the early 1980's.
Of the 3.8 million adults between the ages of 20 and 29, 41 per cent still live with mom and dad. This is a significant jump of 27 per cent since 1981.
Gentile admits young people today are far different from her own generation. Of course, she says, no two generations are expected to be the same. As the years pass, trends evolve and society manages to evolve along with it.
However, Gentile says what is truly significant with young adults is their somewhat calculated outlook on life.
"I was 23-years-old when I got married," she says. "I was barely out of university and was out on my own starting my life. Sure, money was important but having a family was important still."
She says in contrast to her age group, young adults now have the freedom to focus more on themselves, or rather, pursue what they feel makes them happy.
"I once had a conversation with a friend of mine about this sort of thing and she managed to really put this situation into perspective," she says. "My friend calls this generation "generation mine" because young people are more concerned with what they want."
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