Researchers are studying a growing phenomenon: more parents are helping their young adult children financially. Some say the recession and student loans are at the heart of the trend.
From USA Today: "Sociologist Teresa Swartz of the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, who has also studied parental giving, says many Baby Boomer parents are giving money now so that their kids' transitions from adolescence to adulthood aren't more difficult than they have to be. "They're saying, 'I have this money now, and why shall I wait until I die before I pass it along to them? They could use it now.' "
"Sally Koslow of New York City, who interviewed more than 150 parents of young adults ages 22-35 for her book Slouching Toward Adulthood: Observations From the Not-So-Empty Nest (out in June), says the recession is a 'dark presence in this whole equation.'
Is this a trend in your community? Ask your readers with a callout, on Facebook and Twitter. What do they think of this phenomenon in general - are adult children who accept help from their parents "slackers" or caught in unique circumstances because of the current state of the economy?
" 'I feel that Boomer parents do feel a bit guilty if they can't help their children as much as they wish they could,' she says"