Hey, guys! ！今天我想聊一下美国人的家庭观念，跟你想象中肯定有很大的区别！

I'm a white mixed(?) (混血) American who grew up in Washington, D.C. My dad is from Europe, and my mom is from Central America. In 2011, I graduated from a private university (私立大学) in California. My friends in the U.S. are white, Asian, African American, Hispanic, and they come from all types of family backgrounds (家庭背景) and economic levels (经济条件｜竞技水平).

本人是美国人，在华盛顿特区的郊区出生长大的白人（混血？）。我爸爸是欧洲人，妈妈是拉美洲人。我2011年从加州的某所私立大学毕业。我在美国时，身边朋友的家庭背景、经济条件都参差不齐，白人、亚裔、黑人、拉美裔都有。

A lot of people in China mistakenly believe (误以为) that Americans are kicked out (踢出去) by their parents and have to start fending for themselves (照料自己) when they turn 18. This type of generalization (以偏概全) brings about a lot of misunderstandings (误解). In the 1950s and 1960s, there were indeed a lot of people who left home once they turned 18, relying (依赖) only on themselves to become something. A lot of Americans support relying on yourself and not asking others for help, but is it actually like this? Millennials (千禧一代), i.e. people born between 1980 and 2000 are living in a completely different world than their parents.

很多人误以为美国人一到18岁就被父母赶出家门，得靠自己生存。这种以偏概全的说法就会导致各种误解。在20世纪50、60年代确实有很多美国人成年了就离开家，靠自己的实力白手起家。很多人都提倡依靠自己，不向别人求助的理念，不过真的是这样么？现在我们所谓的millennials（千禧一代）生活的环境跟之前不同。

Nearly 75% of American parents give their adult children financial support 

在美国4分之3的父母给成人孩子钱

A recent study from December 2017 found that 74% of American parents financially support (支持) their children.

近期（2017年12月）有调查发现，74%的父母给自己已经成年的孩子提供金钱上的支持。

This might be because of the Great Recession (大衰退) of 2008, but either way, the picture above shows that many adults in America still rely on their parents for financial help in some way. So clearly, American parents are willing to (愿意) help.

这可能算是2008年美国经济大衰退所导致的一种现状，但无论如何，入上图所示，有许多成年人仍然依赖父母。由此可见，很多美国父母确实愿意帮助自己的孩子。

Paying Tuition 交学费

If we look at a recent report (报告) regarding how Americans pay for college, we can see that about 31% of parents put up money (掏钱) for their kids' college education. Compared to the cost of education in China, this is a huge sum (数额｜金额) of money. Just looking at tuition (学费), students at public universities spend about USD$10,000 every year, while students at private universities pay around USD$35,000, and this isn't even including other room and board (住宿), which can easily be another 10,000 to 20,000 dollars.

另外如果看最近大学学费报告可看出31%的父母掏钱交孩子的大学学费，而且跟中国相比，这还算是一大笔钱。光看学费的话，上公立大学的学生每年需交10000美元（约63000元人民币）的学费，私立大学每年所需花费为35000美元（约222000元人民币），这还不包括食宿、生活费等。

If we look at different ethnic groups (种族｜族群), we can see that Asian parents do in fact support their children more than other groups, but about half or just over half of other Americans get financial support from their parents for their education, too!

如果按种族来分，可看出亚裔父母提供的支持比较多，但别的美国人中还有大约50%或稍微多一点得到父母的支持。

Help with Down Payments and Mortgages 帮忙交首付、还贷款

This is an area where the U.S. and China are very different. First of all, in the U.S. most people don't feel the need to have a house and car before they get married, and people do also get married significantly (相当｜相对) later in the U.S. 

美国在这一方面跟中国截然不同。在美国，结婚前没有很多需要符合的条件，有车有房等，而且美国人平均结婚年龄相对晚很多。

If we look at statistics (统计), parents do in fact help with this if they can, and if they did, 65% of parents said they would pay up to 90% of the down payment (首付) for their children; however, parents are now deciding to help in other ways, like helping with other expenses (开支) or letting them live at home.

如果看目前的统计，有能力的话，很多父母对会帮孩子。以前，如果帮孩子的话，65%的父母会帮孩子交首付。不过，最近很多父母决定用别的方式来帮孩子，比如帮他们交别的费用或者继续住在家里攒钱。

Grandparents Help with Kids 爷爷奶奶帮带孩子

Over the last 50 years,  there have been many societal (社会的) changes in the U.S.

• First of all, women have been having children (生孩子) later and later; thus, grandparents are getting older and older.

• Secondly, In the U.S., most people work until 65, even 70 years old, so a lot of people who have kids in their 20s and early 30s can't rely on their parents for help. Grandma and grandpa are still working.

• Finally, everyone knows that the U.S. is an immigrant nation (移民国家), and a lot of people leave their hometowns (老家) for education and work-related reasons. 

近50年美国社会发生了很多变化。

• 首先，女性生孩子平均年龄越来越高，导致爷爷奶奶的年龄也自然高了。

• 其次，在美国很多人工作到65甚至70岁，所以很多30岁生孩子的人不能靠父母来看孩子。爷爷奶奶还是上班族呢。

• 最后，大家都知道美国是移民国家，而且很多人因学习或工作的原因而离开自己老家，很多人都不会在自己成长的地方定居，更别说那些跑到别的国家工作的人。

Now, what this means is that a lot of grandparents are by their kids or can't spend a lot of time with their grandkids, but that doesn't mean they don't actually want to.

这几个原因都会影响爷爷奶奶看孩子的能力，我估计他们还挺想见到孙子女。

一般来说，人们的刻板印象肯定是有原因的，也许是历史原因，也许依然存在。当然美国人还是比中国人“独立”很多（是真独立吗？），但是近几年越来越多的人回父母家住。不管是为了省钱、攒钱还是什么原因，80后、90后都成为了所谓的boomerang kids（啃老族｜归巢族｜飞去来族）。另外，越来越多的美国父母愿意帮助自己已经成年的孩子、提供金钱支持。

今天我们就说到这儿！你觉得“传统”的美国父母逼孩子独立、依靠自己的做法如何？中国父母的作风有什么坏处吗？留言跟我说一下！

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想每天跟我学习更多，深入学习万能的句型、重要的词汇、地道的表达，

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