Mom, Dad, don’t turn my old bedroom into a new office or gym just yet.

Living at home after 18 has always had its negative perceptions in American society. Just watch “Stepbrothers” if you have any doubts. The old norm is that once you’re an adult, you’re on your own. Moving back into a parent’s basement has been treated with shame and as an absolute last resort for students tying up loose ends ahead of commencement in May.

But that stigma could be changing. A 2017 report by the Pew Research Center found that more young adults are living at home — and for longer periods of time.

In 2016, 15 percent of people ages 25-35 were living in their parents’ home. This is a jump from 2000, when that number was about 10 percent. The report explains this changing trend could be influenced by various factors, including “success in the labor market, the cost of living independently, and debt obligations.”

It’s a good sign for our generation. If more people are living at home after college, it’ll become more culturally accepted, and perhaps encouraged. Living at home can help us with our financial burdens, especially when we’re already grappling with rising rent costs and living expenses, and of course the price of avocados. There are also cultural benefits. Living at home has the potential to strengthen familial relationships, especially since Western countries like the United States tend to be more individualistic than Eastern cultures.

Since living at home is often a financially viable — and sometimes better — option than living independently, it’s difficult to pin down where the stigma comes from. This mindset could trickle down from previous generations, but Sara Burke, an assistant professor of psychology at Syracuse University, said our biases toward others stem from our own uneasiness.

“I can imagine that some people’s reaction to partially judge young people who live with their parents … whether they know it or not, some of what they’re feeling may reflect a sense that the world is changing and a discomfort with that,” Burke said.

Maybe it’s the frightening reality of changing job markets and financial conditions, or even just the demographic changes in the U.S. But whatever the reasons behind our discomfort, it’s not fair to judge other young adults for decisions in their personal lives, or subject them to invalid stereotypes about their “level of success.”

“In our broader culture, some people view living with your parents in your 20s as an indication that you’re not working hard enough to live independently,” Burke said. “That is a larger constellation of classist attitudes that are potentially very damaging.”

Burke added that living with one’s parents is a “perfectly valid strategy.” And it is — it’s one of many valid strategies. Everyone has different rules for living their lives, and although we often abide by unspoken societal norms, there should be no pressure or judgment in going against the “majority” way.

This isn’t to say everyone should, or should want to, move back home immediately after graduation. Surely there’s some sense of satisfaction in moving into your own apartment. But the growing number of young adults living at home could normalize that choice, and make it more generally respected, as it should be.

Rashika Jaipuriar is a junior broadcast and digital journalism and civic engagement dual major. Her column appears biweekly. She can be reached at rjaipuri@syr.edu and followed on Twitter @rashikajpr.

Published on February 20, 2018 at 10:25 pm