The impact of parental separation on young Italians’ trajectories towards adulthood

While many studies investigate the effects of parental separation on children, whether in terms of short-term adjustment or long-term effects, the tendency is to examine each outcome in isolation, thus overlooking any interdependencies between them. In this paper, we focus on the impact of parental separation on two main aspects defining the transition to adulthood: attainment of economic independence and the formation of one’s own household. Specifically, we examine in a comprehensive way whether young Italians whose parents separated during childhood or youth follow different trajectories compared to those whose parents remained together. Using data from two cross-sectional rounds of the “Families and Social Subjects” survey conducted in 2009 and 2016, we implement a sequence analysis multistate model procedure. Our results suggest that children of non-intact families follow particular trajectories, especially with respect to the formation of their own household, where cohabitation is favored.