Press Statement - Growing up in Ireland Cohort '98 at Age 25 - Main Results

Growing Up in Ireland (GUI)

The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (27 January 2025) published the first set of results from the 25-year-old respondents to the Growing Up in Ireland (GUI) survey. As the oldest cohort of respondents to the GUI, they first took part in 2007/'08 when they were nine years old.

GUI is a crucial, national, longitudinal study of children and young people in Ireland and provides an essential evidence base for researchers and policy makers. GUI is a collaborative study between the CSO and the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration, and Youth (DCEDIY).

Since its inception, this longitudinal study has followed the lives of more than 19,000 children and young people through two different cohorts: those who were aged nine (Cohort '98) and those who were aged nine months (Cohort '08) in 2007/’08.

In September 2024, a new baby cohort of nine-month-old infants was launched by the CSO and DCEDIY, known as Cohort '24. Throughout 2025 the CSO will continue to invite randomly sampled families of nine-month-old babies to be part of this significant survey and be the voice of children in Ireland. In the 16 years since the GUI survey last sampled families with new babies, there have been significant social, economic, and policy changes in this country. The GUI survey will provide essential data on the extent to which these changes affect child development, and will inform the creation of responsive, child-focused policies, in order to improve the potential delivery of services for children and their families in Ireland.

Statistician's Comment

Dr. Katie O’Farrell, Senior Statistician at the CSO and Head of Division for the Growing Up Ireland Survey, said:

“Today the CSO publishes Growing Up in Ireland Cohort '98 at 25: Main Results. This release captures the experience of this group of adults, now aged 25 years, as they navigate life in Ireland. They shared their thoughts on key topics such as housing, the cost of living, relationships, social concerns, and well-being. With the voice of the respondent at the centre of GUI, the questions in this survey aimed to capture information on the most relevant issues affecting this group of people. In this wave of data collection, Cohort '98 were also asked whether they had experienced discrimination, and whether they provided care for a member of their family. To understand and highlight any changes in behaviour over time, we revisited questions on potentially risky behaviours such as frequency of drug use or alcohol consumption. 

Ireland has witnessed these participants growing up: We first met this cohort when they were nine years old, before revisiting them at ages 13, 17, and 20 years. A special COVID-19 survey was additionally run in December 2020 when Cohort '98 were aged 22 years. Over the years we have been privileged to learn so much about their lives. As such, this Main Results release can provide a unique insight into the lives of this group of adults in Ireland.”

Snapshot of Some of the Contributions of Cohort '98 to the GUI Survey Over Time

Aged nine years (survey conducted in 2007/'08):

• Children were asked to complete the sentence: “The thing that makes me most happy is…” The most popular overall answer was family (24%), closely followed by friends (22%) and sport (20%).
• Just under 45% of nine-year-olds in 2007/’08 had a mobile phone.
• Vacuuming/cleaning was the most widely performed household chore by nine-year-olds.

Aged 13 years (survey conducted in 2011/'12):

• Around half (51%) of 13-year-olds expected to achieve a degree level education.
• Nearly six in ten (59%) teenagers had access to the internet via a mobile phone or other mobile device.
• Two in five (40%) had internet access to a PC or a laptop in their bedroom.

Aged 17 years (survey conducted in 2015/'16):

• One in ten young people reported they had been diagnosed with depression, anxiety, or both.
• A third of all respondents who were still in school had part-time jobs.
• Four in five respondents (80%) had their first drink between the ages of 15 and 17 years.

Aged 20 years (survey conducted in 2018/'19):

• Over two-thirds of 20-year-olds gave further/higher education or training as their main activity.
• Financial and employment security were among the main aspirations of young people. More than 70% regarded being financially secure and having a good job by the age of 30 as highly important.
• Two out of five 20-year-olds indicated very high levels of concern about access to housing in Ireland while nearly one in three (31%) indicated very high levels of concern about poverty in Ireland and climate change.

Some Key Findings From the Respondents Aged 25 Years (Survey Conducted in 2023/'24)

• Over eight in ten (82.0%) said their principal economic status was employed at the time of the survey interview.
• Those in employment had an average life satisfaction score of 6.7 (out of a maximum of ten), with those not in employment, education, or training reporting an average life satisfaction score of 5.5.
• Women with the highest incomes had the highest reported levels of job satisfaction.
• Of those who were not homeowners at the time of the survey, eight in ten (80.5%) expected to buy a home in the future.
• Nearly two-thirds of respondents (65.6%) said they had been discriminated against at least a few times in the year prior to the survey.
• Almost one in five (18.1%) men had experienced people acting as if they were afraid of them at least a few times a year.
• Figures for mental health metrics have declined since this cohort was aged 20 years.
• More than one in five (21.4%) had tried cocaine at least once in the year prior to the survey.
• Over half (56.4%) of all respondents strongly agreed or agreed with the statement “I am optimistic about the future”.

Please see Growing Up in Ireland Cohort '98 at age 25: Main Results for a detailed breakdown of results and more information.

Appreciation

The CSO would like to thank the many contributors to Growing Up in Ireland Cohort '98. We would like to particularly thank the participating respondents and their families for their ongoing co-operation in agreeing to take part in the GUI survey and for recognising the importance of facilitating the collection of this highly significant data.

We would also like to thank the 500 individuals who despite emigrating, still completed the survey which resulted in a separate emigration module that allowed us to provide valuable insights into this sub-cohort.

The results published today would not have been possible without our field data collection team who collected this important information; the DCEDIY as our key delivery partner in the GUI study; and all the teams across the CSO who were involved in the GUI Cohort '98 at age 25 campaign culminating in today’s successful publication of the results.