Fewer young peope are reaching economic milestones linked to adulthood

Fewer young adults are achieving economic and family milestones typically associated with adulthood, according to a recent working paper from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The paper looked at nationally representative data from 2005 and 2023 to examine changes in young adults' experiences reaching major life events, such as moving out of their parents' house, getting married, and having a child. Researchers found a dramatic shift in the attainment of these milestones in recent decades.

The reason for this, according to the paper, is that more young adults between the ages of 25 and 34 are facing economic barriers compared with previous generations. Changing societal attitudes around family formation are also contributing to the sharp decline in the share of young people reaching what the U.S. Census Bureau considers to be "key milestones."

According to the working paper, "Changes in Milestones of Adulthood," almost half of all young adults in 1975 had reached four milestones associated with adulthood: moving out of one's parents' home, getting a job, getting married and having a child.

Five decades on, that progression has changed dramatically. The share of young adults that have followed the traditional pathway to adulthood has dropped to less than a quarter, according to the paper.

"...Living arrangements, economic opportunities and attitudes toward family formation have not been experienced in the same fashion across generations of young adults," the working paper reads. "Increases in job turbulence and economic downturns, for example, have resulted in some young adults navigating more volatile and uncertain economic environments."

Economic conditions, combined with changing cultural norms, "have implications for how young people develop their identity as adults," the paper states.

This redefinition of young adulthood comes as the cost of everyday essentials, including housing, food, gas and daycare rises. As a result, more Americans are choosing to forego having a family, in some cases because they deem such choices unaffordable, the study finds.

Researchers measured changes in the achievement of individual milestones, too. While one-quarter of young adults achieved all four milestones, 28% met two economic milestones — moving out of their parents' homes and finding jobs.

In the 1970s, getting married, having a child, and living independently, were the second-most common group of milestones young people achieved, next to the completion of all four.

Women's gains in the workforce, along with changing cultural attitudes, however, have led this combination of milestones to become less popular, the report notes.

The completion of education, another marker of adulthood, has overshadowed other milestones over the years as an increasing number of young adults enroll in college, according to the paper.

"These higher levels of educational attainment result in contemporary cohorts spending a longer portion of their young adult lives enrolled in higher education, potentially delaying other markers of adulthood such as entering the labor force or marriage," the working paper states.

When it comes to perceptions of adulthood, having a job takes precedence over marriage, as young adults see economic achievements as more directly tied to adulthood than they do committing to a spouse.

"Marriage is increasingly viewed as a capstone of adulthood, something to pursue after achieving economic stability through completing formal education, establishing an independent household and becoming employed," the working paper states.