Résumé en français : Qu'on les appelle les Bamboccioni ou les Boomerang kids, les jeunes vivent de plus en plus longtemps chez leurs parents.

In the Guardian, John Hopper states that, “More than half of Italians aged 18 to 34 still live at home”. But the only real surprise is the high number. According to John Hopper, the social implications of this trend has prompted an Italian politician to call for ‘a new law forcing “bamboccioni” – mummies’ boys and girls – to leave the nest at 18.’ Alas, the unnamed politician does not appear to have come up with any ideas how to solve the financial problem which is the root cause of the trend. Hopper quotes “bamboccioni” Maurizio Schiavi, ’If the minister knows how to pay for it, I'd welcome a law ­forbidding over-18s from staying at home. I'm a trained sound engineer. I've lived alone and abroad. I've been married and divorced. But here I am, back with my mother and father at age 36.” Most of us have either personally experienced, or observed friends who have been forced, primarily because of financial reasons, to move back home. And it’s fortunate that in the changing times we live in, there is no longer a stigma attached to moving back in with one’s parents.
A Forbes magazine headline reads, “Hi, Mom! I’m...Back” and confirms that it’s not just an Italian problem. In America, the “bamboccioni” are called “The boomerang kids”, an appropriate name for young adults that leave their parents for a while and then, like a boomerang, come back to live with them. According to New York Life, “The trend is cyclical. Especially during tough economic times, adult children head for home.”
Monster's 2009 Annual Entry-Level Job Outlook points out that about 40 percent of 2008 grads still live with their parents.
In the UK, according to an article in The Times, “The [“bamboccioni”] trend has been on the increase for a while. Figures from the Office for National Statistics show that 25% of men aged 25 to 29 and "only" 13% of women, now live with their parents, postponing the transition to adulthood. Their numbers are being swelled by the collapse of the youth labour market and the debt graduates have accumulated by the time they finish their studies.
"It is also a reflection of the changing roles of men and women and changing expectations of normative ages for partnership and family formation," say Ann Berrington, Julie Stone and Jane Falkingham of Southampton University. "It is unclear the extent to which remaining in (or returning to) the parental home is an outcome of choice rather than constraint for these 'emerging adults'.
The good news is that this global trend can create a win-win situation for both parents and child, provided that they follow some golden rules:
- make sure that parents and child have the same expectations about the living arrangement.
- set child's obligations and discuss living arrangements.
- get the child to pay a rent.
- set a limit for how long he or she will stay at home.
The worst-case scenario is when there is no job, no contribution, no departure date, and the parents are at odds over their child's presence.