“Failure to launch”? Examining age-period-cohort influences on young adults’ living arrangements in the U.S., 1974 – 2013

Laryssa Mykyta, U.S. Census Bureau

In this analysis I use data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey Social and Economic Supplement (CPS ASEC) to examine changes in young adults’ living arrangements from 1974 through 2013. Further, I estimate hierarchical age-period-cohort models to determine the extent to which changes in living arrangements reflect cohort or period effects. Preliminary results for the period 1995 to 2012 reveal significant period effects, particularly for the period 2007-2011, highlighting the role of the recent recession in 2008-2009 in dampening household formation and residential independence among young adults. I find less support for cohort change, but cultural shifts leading to a longer transition to adulthood likely preceded the time period under examination on the preliminary analysis.