Sie befinden Sich nicht im Netzwerk der Universität Paderborn. Der Zugriff auf elektronische Ressourcen ist gegebenenfalls nur via VPN oder Shibboleth (DFN-AAI) möglich. mehr Informationen...
Reviews the book, The Boomerang Age: Transitions to Adulthood in Families by Barbara A. Mitchell (see record 2006-01896-000). Adult children's return to their home of origin after a hiatus of a few years away, whether after college, military service, or even work, seems a new phenomenon that has attracted attention from the media. Offspring who return home should not be considered similar to those who remain at home until marriage or until they obtain a paying job, as is often the case in southern European countries, especially Italy (L'Abate, 2004). Yet, according to Mitchell, this is not a new phenomenon. There were periods in the early parts of the previous century when children, especially women, went back home to care for sick parents. This recent trend, however, seems more prevalent among men than among women, and it is not to take care of sick parents. The most important and interesting part of this phenomenon lies in its historical and cultural roots, which are familiar to many sociologists, such as Mitchell, but are often ignored by psychologists. How far does one have to go to understand it? What level of analysis is the most relevant to understanding why some young people never go back home after they leave, whereas others come back and some even stay? Consequently, Mitchell embeds the boomerang age within the context of increasing individualism and secularism in both North American and European countries as well as in the context of many other ethnic and cultural changes that have occurred on both continents during the last generation (e.g., immigration, financial downturns, political upheavals, wars). If there is no theory, how about empirical data? The reviewer would be surprised if this topic had not been covered already in relevant journals. If we have no theoretical models or even measures to evaluate it, how do we contribute to a psychological rather than a sociological understanding of this phenomenon? (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved)