According to recent reports, a survey of recent US college graduates has found that almost 10% have asked a parent to accompany them to a job interview – while 3% have actually had a parent in the interview room. Which begs the questions – what are the reasons behind this trend? And would you invite your mum or dad along to a job interview?
The findings have caused widespread concern among sociologists, with some experts theorising that the trend signals an endemic failure to launch into independent adulthood. Many agree that the likely cause of this “hyperdependence” is “digital apron strings”. In other words, as the first generation to grow up using the internet, e-mail and text messaging, generation-y may find it harder to become independent.
And it can be argued that this trend has been positively encouraged by big name employers of late. The perks offered by Silicon Valley giants, such as free food and dry cleaning, have long been sniped at for supporting a state of perpetual adolescence. But the fact that Google has launched a “Bring your Parents to Work” day has taken the debate on what’s really appropriate to the next level.
Meanwhile, according to a recent Canadian survey, more than fifty per cent of parents want to learn more about what their child does, and more than one-third feel it could be beneficial to their child’s career development if they had a better understanding of the child’s job. So, in an age where the top ten most in-demand job titles didn’t even exist ten years ago – is it unreasonable for parents to want to know more about the professional lives of their offspring? And would greater parental intervention actually help or hinder professional development?