Social challenges have a greater impact on young people
The latest Eurobarometer survey, published in December of 2024, revealed that Irish people have the highest life satisfaction in the European Union. Some 98% citizens in Ireland said they are satisfied with their life.
Furthermore, the Emerald Isle ranked as the third richest country in the world last year, on the HelloSafe Prosperity Index. This ranking consider factors like economic strength and income equality.
However, and despite Ireland being a prosperous and peaceful nation, some social problems are far from being addressed. And young people are, in many cases, the most affected.
Delay adulthood
“For previous generations, people could afford to leave the family home and get a house at a much younger age. Whereas for the current generation is a lot more extended, so that brings some challenges, because its more difficult to get independence from their parents”, explains Bernadine Brady, Lecturer at the School of Political Science & Sociology in the University of Galway and Senior Researcher with the UNESCO Child & Family Research Centre.
According to the study ‘Growing up in Ireland: Cohort 98’, carried out by the Central Statistics Office (CSO), almost 70% of 25-year-olds were still living with their parents. Within this group, 62.4% argued mostly financial reasons. This survey, that involved 3380 individuals, was done between April 2023 and April 2024.
“Part of the problem is the change of nature in work”, Brady points out. “Nowadays you need a third level education, to do jobs that previously you didn’t need. So people have to go to college, and are in a state of dependency for longer. And a lot of jobs have become outsourced, so it’s harder to find decent work that pays well”.
The housing crisis is another main issue affecting young Irish people. The data from the CSO shows that 30 330 housing units were completed in 2024, which represents a decrease of 6.7% compared to 2023.
“We have a severe housing crisis, so that adds to people staying longer with their parents. There can be a tendency to criticize young people or consider them less diligent. But actually, sociologists will argue that is structural changes and society that are causing delay adulthood, rather than young people choosing to take longer to grow up”, Brady indicates.
For Eoin Devereux, cultural sociologist and professor at the University of Limerick, two main factors are affecting younger generations: “The housing crisis and the lack of supports and funding around mental health are the most pressing issues. The failure to provide housing options for young people is the most problematic”.
Political accountability
Governments have been relying too heavily on the market as a self-regulating entity, a belief that is clearly not mitigating the housing crisis at all. Rather, the situation continues to worsen.
“I think the government has a responsibility in the housing situation, they could do a lot more. But in terms of other issues, like the changes in the nature of work, it’s difficult to see what can be done about those”, concludes Brady.
