The economics of ageing and the political economy of old age

Jackson, William A.

doi:10.1080/758529651

Cited by 6 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…This debate could also be viewed in terms of integrating the demand and supply implications of population ageing. The more recent literature, with a few notable exceptions (such as Cutler et al, 1990;Jackson, 1994) is preoccupied with the consumption side and the need to restructure social security provision. The following sections will provide a critical survey of this literature and its policy implications.…”

Section: Economics Of Ageing In Development Literaturementioning

confidence: 99%

Crisis of Ageing in Less Developed Countries: Too Much Consumption or Too Little Production?

Messkoub

1999

Development and Change

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The age structure in many developing countries is changing Ð the population is ageing. There is increasing concern over the social and economic costs of caring for this ageing population, and the capacity of the state to ®nance the expected rising social expenditure has come to dominate the debate on the economics of population ageing. In this context the elderly are considered primarily as consumers and`dependent' on the working population. Following the Keynesian and post-Keynesian literature, this article argues that such a view of the elderly is incorrect, for several reasons. Firstly, empirical evidence shows that the aged do not consume (relative to their income) more than the rest of the population. Secondly, the issue of`dependency' of the aged should be put in the broader context of the dependency of the unemployed and underemployed in a market economy. Thirdly, the focus of the debate should move away from consumption and towards production; and ®nally, since the old make claims on the national output on the basis of their accumulated assets, savings and pensions, the distributional issues (with regard to assets as well as incomes) have to be an integral part of any pension system in order to alleviate poverty among the elderly.

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Section: Economics Of Ageing In Development Literaturementioning

confidence: 99%

Crisis of Ageing in Less Developed Countries: Too Much Consumption or Too Little Production?

Messkoub

1999

Development and Change

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“…The argument that population ageing will lead to a crisis in health care and public services is open to abuse: proponents of cuts in welfare spending can exploit demographic change as a reason for diminished public services (Jackson, 1994. If ageing appears to dictate cuts in social policy, then there is no need to justify the cuts on more controversial social, political or economic grounds.…”

Section: Policy Questionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Age, Health and Medical Expenditure

Jackson¹

2001

The Social Economics of Health Care

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Ageing populations in developed countries have placed increasing demands on health care services and drawn attention to how age is related to medical expenditure. The effect of ageing on health involves a mixture of biological and social factors that ideally requires an interdisciplinary approach if it is to be properly understood. Expenditure decisions connected to age add further complexity by raising difficult ethical problems. The current paper aims to bring out the intricacy of the age-medical expenditure relation and highlight the biological, social and ethical background that has often been overlooked in the economic literature.

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“…Since a life cycle was written into public institutions, any academic work that acknowledged these institutions would be adopting (implicitly or otherwise) a life-cycle stance. Arguments about the social construction of old age have come largely from outside the economics discipline, though they have affinities with institutionalism and other heterodox approaches -retirement policies provide a clear instance of how institutions shape economic behaviour (Wolozin, 1990;Jackson, 1994;Dugger, 1999). Social constructionist theories, despite their non-economic heritage, mesh well with heterodox economics.…”

Section: The Life Cycle As a Conceptmentioning

confidence: 99%

Retirement Policies and the Life Cycle: Current Trends and Future Prospects

Jackson

2009

Review of Political Economy

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During the 20 th century, pensions in developed countries were generally payable from a statutory retirement age which provided a norm for retirement behaviour and a threshold dividing older from younger age groups. Governments, by setting fixed starting dates for work and retirement, created a standardised life cycle with clearly delineated and uniform boundaries between education, work and retirement stages. Over the last thirty years or so, retirement behaviour has diverged from official norms and moved towards earlier retirement, though pressures for later retirement are now increasing as concerns over pension finance provoke calls for older workers to remain economically active. Weaker retirement norms have prompted speculation that working practices may be evolving from a Fordist life cycle with fixed stages to post-Fordist life courses with fluid and variable personal experiences. This paper assesses current trends, asking whether they do indicate major changes in the life cycle, and considers the flexibility of retirement, paying particular attention to the influence of government and employers. Several ways in which retirement could develop are identified, but few of them remove the constraints on retirees: truly flexible retirement will not occur spontaneously and will require explicit policies to safeguard retirement choices.

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The economics of ageing and the political economy of old age

Cited by 6 publications

References 23 publications

Crisis of Ageing in Less Developed Countries: Too Much Consumption or Too Little Production?

Crisis of Ageing in Less Developed Countries: Too Much Consumption or Too Little Production?

Age, Health and Medical Expenditure

Retirement Policies and the Life Cycle: Current Trends and Future Prospects

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