Emily Chan
In America, it is considered normal for kids to move out and leave their parents’ house once they turn 18-years-old. And most 18-year-olds are anxious to do so because it indicates independence and competence.
People who continue living in their parents’ homes after they turn 18 are often seen as immature and lazy.
However, adults living in different parts of the world are in no rush to move out of their parents’ homes.
Outside of the United States, there isn’t as much of a stigma surrounding the concept of living with your parents.
According to a study from the Pew Research Center, Americans are more likely than their European counterparts to perceive young adults living with their parents as a bad thing. In 2021, only one in three U.S. adults ages 18 to 34 lived in their parents’ house.
But recently, the U.S. has noticed a shift in the number of kids moving into their own places. With the bleak state of the job market and inflation at an all-time high, more and more young adults are embracing the idea of living with their families.
Some people on social media are asserting that the negative view toward young adults living at home is just a strategy to force them to pay more bills so institutions can make more money.
A TikToker who goes by the handle @southerngalala51 shared a screenshot of a tweet discussing the topic from a Twitter user named Adam Lane Smith.
The post reads, “Reminder that ‘your kids should leave home at 18’ is a psyop by the central banks to make 10 ext. family members pay 10 rents/mortgages, 10 sets of utilities, 10 car payments, and 10 of every item needed for a home, plus entertainment and stress relief to cope with being alone.”
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