More families in the U.S. are adopting more traditional living arrangements. Shifting demographics, evolving lifestyles for older Americans, economic circumstances, and increasing ethnic diversity are all important contributing factors.
Executive director of nonprofit Generations United Donna Butts claims there are many advantages to this arrangement -- studies have shown children in single-parent households that also include grandparents exhibited improved school performance, and one showing that older adults who spend more time with grandchildren live longer, per Curbed.
Butts says that this way of thinking—what she calls the ‘John Wayne, go-it-alone mentality’—is withering in the United States. Multigenerational living, when more than one generation lives under one roof (not counting young children or teens), has hit record levels in the U.S. In 2014, according to Pew Research Center data, 60.6 million people, or 19 percent of the U.S. population, lived in multigenerational homes, including 26.9 million three-generation households.