Will They Turn Their Back on You? The Relations with Parents among Young People Choosing Cohabitation as the Living Arrangement in Poland and Italy

Anna Baranowska, Warsaw School of Economics
Elena Pirani, University of Florence

This article investigates the role of intergenerational relations for union formation in Poland and Italy, where cohabitation has become increasingly common only recently. Both these societies are characterized by strong attachment to catholic religion and tradition. Limited welfare state support for youth reinforces the role of kinship ties in Polish and Italian culture. Recent research has argued that under such conditions, youth avoids living arrangement choices which clash with parental values. Deterioration of relationships with family might weaken support received by youth. Hence, cohabitation is chosen mainly among youth with secularized and liberal parents. Using data from Polish and Italian Generation and Gender Survey we would like to show if these are indeed mainly young people from well-educated, liberal families who cohabit. Next, we analyze how living arrangement choices are interrelated with the frequency and satisfaction from contacts with parents, as well as chances for receiving material support from family.