Not-so-prodigal sons and daughters

No doubt this report on children returning to live in the family home is going to be used by some as a stick to beat young people with - how dare they make their parents' lives a misery? - but it's worth dwelling on the reasons behind the trend. Hopefully there'll also be further research commissioned into the phenomenon from the perspective of returning children, both identifying the key factors that prompt them to head home (*cough* employment difficulties and house prices *cough*) and the effects on their own quality of life and psychological well-being. I'd imagine that for many it's a rather humiliating experience that causes considerable damage to self-esteem as well as impeding their own autonomy.