Chapter 22: Family Connections

The introductory text reads, There are many ways to depict family living arrangements, and all of them lead to the same conclusions. Generally, family members remain connected to each other lifelong. Burdensome caregiving is not the norm.
A bar graph shows Living arrangements, Young and old in the United States as follows.
Living Alone: Age 19 to 34, 7 percent; Age 34 to 64, 12 percent; and Age 65 plus, 26 percent.
Living with Spouse: Age 19 to 34, 24 percent; Age 34 to 64, 59 percent; and Age 65 plus, 53 percent.
Living with unmarried partner: Age 19 to 34, 10 percent; Age 34 to 64, 6 percent; and Age 65 plus, 2 percent.
Living with other relatives: Age 19 to 34, 13 percent; Age 34 to 64, 14 percent; and Age 65 plus, 16 percent.
Living with friends or roommates: Age 19 to 34, 12 percent; Age 34 to 64, 4 percent; and Age 65 plus, 3 percent.
The corresponding text reads, Most families have only one generation of adults, but when two generations are present, parents are more often helping adult children than the reverse.
A graph plots the percentage of U. S. families with only one generation of adults (over age 18) from 1950 to 2016 as follows: 1950, 79 percent; 1960, 85 percent; 1970, 87 percent; 1980, 88 percent; 1990, 86 percent; 2000, 85 percent; 2009, 83 percent; 2016, 80 percent.
The corresponding text reads, As you see, there are only slightly more two-adult generation families in the United States today than 30 years ago. What has changed, however, is that those extra adults are usually adult children, not aged parents. So, what percentage of adults live with other generations of adults over age 18?
A graph plots the percentage of adults living with other generations from 1980 to 2016 for two age groups as follows:
1980: 85 plus (usually dependent on younger generations), 26 percent; and 25 to 29 years (Usually dependent on parents), 13 percent.
1990: 85 plus (usually dependent on younger generations), 19 percent; and 25 to 29 years (Usually dependent on parents), 18 percent.
2016: 85 plus (usually dependent on younger generations), 25 percent; and 25 to 29 years (Usually dependent on parents), 33 percent.
The corresponding text reads, Currently about one-fourth of younger adults and about one-third of the oldest-old are living with the middle generation. Thus, despite the hype of intergenerational living, this is not the norm.