Abstract
The phenomenon of adult children returning to their family homes, commonly known as ‘boomeranging’, has witnessed a notable surge across various European countries. The COVID-19 pandemic has affected many families, reorganising family routines. Young adults who had recently been living independently—engaged in work, studies, and intimate relationships—have returned to their family homes. This chapter aims to explore the phenomenon of adult children returning home during the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on the context of France and Poland. We analysed 78 in-depth interviews with parents of adult children in Poland (25) and in France (53). The majority of the participants were parents whose children either were students or had just started work. The analysis revealed that while parents felt overwhelmed with the additional housework and the need to adapt their living arrangements and routines, they also enjoyed the temporary return of their children. The reunion provided an opportunity for parents to reconnect with their children and establish new, fulfilling relationships, preparing them emotionally for the eventual departure of their adult children once again.
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Gaviria, S., Herzberg-Kurasz, M., Ż adkowska, M. (2024). Return to the ‘Full Nest’—Re-Cohabitation in Times of the Pandemic in France and Poland. In: Żadkowska, M., Skowrońska, M., Giraud, C., Schmidt, F. (eds) Reconfiguring Relations in the Empty Nest. Palgrave Macmillan Studies in Family and Intimate Life. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-50403-7_7
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