An unexpected return to the nest. Young Polish people in tertiary education residing with their parents due to the COVID-19 pandemic
 
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Uniwersytet im. Adama Mickiewicza w Poznaniu, Wydział Studiów Edukacyjnych, Szamarzewskiego 89, 60-568 Poznań
 
 
Submission date: 2023-09-22
 
 
Final revision date: 2023-10-17
 
 
Acceptance date: 2023-11-29
 
 
Online publication date: 2023-12-30
 
 
Corresponding author
Paulina Peret-Drążewska   

Uniwersytet im. Adama Mickiewicza w Poznaniu, Wydział Studiów Edukacyjnych, Szamarzewskiego 89, 60-568 Poznań
 
 
Wychowanie w Rodzinie 2023;30(4):173-196
 
KEYWORDS
TOPICS
ABSTRACT
Aim. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused various changes in the lives of academic youth. The closure of universities, the transition to distance education, limited social interactions and difficulties in the labour market often resulted in decisions to return to the family homeand live with their parents again. This change generated subsequent transformations in various areas of the students’ functioning. The considerations undertaken in this article were devoted to the analysis of the specific functioning of students living with their parents again during a pandemic, based on the results of the team’s own research, as well as a review of other research carried out during this period with the participation of students. Methods and materials. The study was conducted using an online survey questionnaire on a sample of 1, 215 students of Polish universities from February to November 2020. The research results revealed that the surveyed young students who returned to their family home during the pandemic experienced a decline in civic engagement, spiritual life, activities related to professional career development, and deterioration of their interpersonal relationships. Results and conclusion. The considerations made in the article seem to be justified because they may help determine the psychophysical condition, relationships with parents, and economic, educational, and professional conditions of students during the COVID-19 pandemic. This will enable the implementation of appropriate actions and preventive programs to support this social group in adapting to functioning in the new pandemic (and post-pandemic) reality and counteracting difficulties, fears, and anxieties related to life changes expected in the future.
 
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