A report highlighted the large number of people aged over 75 whose closest children lived a substantial distance away from them, exacerbating problems of loneliness.
Source: Loneliness amongst Older People and the Impact of Family Connections, WRVS
Links: Report | WRVS press release | BBC report
Date: 2012-Dec
A report said that European governments needed to do more to reduce the long-term cost of ageing to the public purse. They should: consider linking eligibility ages of state pensions to life expectancy; do more to ensure that the labour market was accessible to older people; ensure that pension systems were sustainable, allowed for greater risk-sharing, and were less vulnerable to longevity risk; and create better conditions for healthcare innovation and development.
Source: Daniela Silcock and David Sinclair, The Cost of Our Ageing Society, International Longevity Centre – UK
Links: Report | ILC press release
Date: 2012-Dec
An article said that the role of grandparents in family life was becoming more important as a result of demographic changes, and that grandparents offered a 'huge resource' to families. Older people generally found their role as grandparents rewarding, and this contributed to well-being and reduced the risk of loneliness.
Source: Sarah Wellard, 'Older people as grandparents: how public policy needs to broaden its view of older people and the role they play within families', Quality in Ageing and Older Adults, Volume 13 Number 4
Links: Abstract
Date: 2012-Dec
An article examined conceptual and empirical aspects of the social exclusion/inclusion debate in later life, with a particular focus on issues of place and space in urban settings. Exploratory findings were reported from two empirical studies in Belgium and England, which sought to examine experiences of social exclusion and inclusion among people aged 60 and over living in deprived inner-city neighbourhoods.
Source: Tine Buffel , Chris Phillipson, and Thomas Scharf, 'Experiences of neighbourhood exclusion and inclusion among older people living in deprived inner-city areas in Belgium and England', Ageing and Society, Volume 33 Special issue 1
Links: Abstract
Date: 2012-Dec
A new book examined ageing in European societies, illustrating innovative methodological approaches to working with diverse elderly populations.
Source: Constantinos Phellas (ed.), Aging in European Societies, Springer
Links: Summary
Date: 2012-Dec
A new book examined the law's approach to ageing, focusing on questions such as: whether the law had promoted ageism; how well the law had protected older people against discrimination, abuse, and social exclusion; and how effective new prohibitions on age discrimination would be when they came into force.
Source: John Williams, The Law and Older People, Routledge
Links: Summary
Date: 2012-Nov
A think-tank paper examined options for households and the state in paying for ageing – including spending on health, state pensions, and long-term care costs. It made a series of recommendations for policy-makers, including: public spending on older people needed a cross-departmental 'holistic review'; fiscal policy-making should not be allowed to crowd out sensible policies on ageing; and an Office for Evidence on Prevention should be created to promote preventative age-related strategies. Long-term decisions were needed immediately: fixing a strategy for paying for ageing could no longer be deferred, and older households deserved clarity.
Source: James Lloyd, Paying for Ageing: Decision time for households and the state, Strategic Society Centre
Date: 2012-Nov
A paper examined the provision of grandparental childcare as a way to remain active in later life, using European data. Providing childcare had a substantial and positive effect on one of the four cognitive tests (verbal fluency) but no statistically significant effect on the others.
Source: Bruno Arpino and Valeria Bordone, Does Grandparenting Pay Off? The effect of childcare on grandparents cognitive functioning, European Demographic Research Papers 4, Vienna Institute of Demography
Links: Paper
Date: 2012-Nov
A think-tank report examined future prospects for the welfare states in Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom, focusing on age-related spending. It said that reform should be based on a clear set of principles as follows:
• Reforms needed to start quickly, because early action reduced the overall costs of change and minimized disruption.
• Changes needed not only to restrict the long-run growth of the size of the state but also to reform what the state did.
• No area of government should go untouched: nothing should be 'off limits' and no single change (such as increasing the retirement age or auto-enrolment for defined-contribution pensions) would suffice.
• People had to put aside more money for their own needs and contribute more to public services, including health and care.
• Market-based solutions were required to support greater individual contributions – for example through income smoothing and risk pooling, and releasing the equity built up in assets.
Source: Patrick Nolan, Lauren Thorpe, and Kimberley Trewhitt, Entitlement Reform, Reform
Date: 2012-Nov
An article examined the extent to which rural studies conducted in Europe (compared with other countries in the 'global north') had addressed the phenomenon of rural ageing.
Source: Vanessa Burholt and Christine Dobbs, 'Research on rural ageing: where have we got to and where are we going in Europe?', Journal of Rural Studies, Volume 28 Issue 4
Links: Abstract
Date: 2012-Nov
An article criticized the apparently entrenched political narrative regarding the 'burden' of dependency in old age and intergenerational strife. This narrative was rooted in a potent combination of ageism and neoliberalism, and was being ramped up by the coalition government's 'austerity fixation' – despite the complete absence of any evidence supporting it.
Source: Alan Walker, 'The new ageism', Political Quarterly, Volume 83 Issue 4
Links: Abstract
Date: 2012-Nov
A report examined ways of overcoming digital exclusion among older people. Over 7.5 million adults had never used the internet. The majority of non-users were older, had disabilities, or were in the lowest income groups.
Source: Mark Mason, David Sinclair, and Craig Berry, Nudge or Compel? Can behavioural economics tackle the digital exclusion of older people?, International Longevity Centre – UK
Links: Report | Summary | Telegraph report
Date: 2012-Nov
A new book examined how ageing, and the increased proportion of older voters, was being framed by the media. It investigated emerging discourses on the topic founded on economic pessimism and predictions of inter-generational conflict.
Source: Scott Davidson, Going Grey: The mediation of politics in an ageing society, Ashgate Publications
Links: Summary
Date: 2012-Nov
A paper made a series of recommendations designed to tackle the multiple discrimination suffered by older lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual, and intersexual people in Europe.
Source: Equality for Older Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex People in Europe, AGE Platform Europe/European Region of the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association
Links: Paper
Date: 2012-Nov
An article examined whether prospective data revealed life course influences on quality of life at older ages; and estimated the relative importance of direct and indirect effects. Material (social class; deprivation) and psycho-social (family conflict; family fracture) circumstances in childhood and adulthood were linked to well-being scores at age 50: but the strength of these relationships was modest, and their influence was primarily indirect via well recognized contemporaneous factors. In this respect quality of life differed from health.
Source: David Blane, Elizabeth Webb, Morten Wahrendorf, and Gopalakrishnan Netuveli, 'Life course influences on quality of life at age 50 years: evidence from the National Child Development Study (1958 British birth cohort study)', Longitudinal and Life Course Studies, Volume 3 Number 3
Links: Abstract
Date: 2012-Oct
A paper examined self-reported measures of subjective well-being in later life.
Source: Bram Vanhoutte, Measuring Subjective Well-Being in Later Life: A review, Working Paper 2012-06, Centre for Census and Survey Research (University of Manchester)
Links: Paper
Date: 2012-Oct
An article examined the 'internalization' of age-related norms in western European countries, focusing on individual differences in terms of social class and gender. Social class had a strong impact on retirement age norms, and there was a complex pattern of gendered norms concerning the timing of retirement.
Source: Jonas Radl, 'Too old to work, or too young to retire? The pervasiveness of age norms in western Europe', Work, Employment and Society, Volume 26 Number 5
Links: Abstract
Date: 2012-Oct
An article examined the extent to which a past emphasis upon 'communities of place' for older people needed to be rebalanced or rethought in the light of emerging evidence for the growing importance of 'communities of interest' linked to friendships, enthusiasms, and increased spending power.
Source: Robin Means and Simon Evans, 'Communities of place and communities of interest? An exploration of their changing role in later life', Ageing and Society, Volume 32 Issue 8
Links: Abstract
Date: 2012-Oct
A report examined the impact of demographic ageing on the provision of public services. It said that the government should bring together all relevant departments and agencies to deliver a new strategy on the issue. People needed to accept that they would have to work longer to help sustain public service provision. There would also need to be a focus on public service reform, including (for example) increasing public spending on preventative healthcare.
Source: The Impact of Demographic Change on Public Service, International Longevity Centre – UK
Links: Report
Date: 2012-Oct
The fifth wave of data was published from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing, collected in 2010-11. The accompanying report This report focused on the issues of pension wealth and contribution dynamics, social detachment, and health and well-being.
Source: James Banks, James Nazroo, and Andrew Steptoe (eds), The Dynamics of Ageing: Evidence from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing 2002–10 (Wave 5), Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, University College London/Institute for Fiscal Studies/National Centre for Social Research/School of Social Sciences, University of Manchester
Links: Report | Manchester University press release | BBC report
Notes: The English Longitudinal Study of Ageing is a multidisciplinary study of a representative sample of men and women aged 50 years and over living in England.
Date: 2012-Oct
An article examined the issues involved in developing urban environments that were responsive to the aspirations and needs of older people.
Source: Tine Buffel, Chris Phillipson, and Thomas Scharf, 'Ageing in urban environments: developing "age-friendly" cities', Critical Social Policy, Volume 32 Issue 4
Links: Abstract
Date: 2012-Oct
An article examined 'active ageing', the strategic policy response to demographic ageing in Europe. Despite a great deal of positive political rhetoric, the response at all levels of policy-making had been 'rather limited'. An active social and public policy was required to mainstream active ageing as the leading paradigm for ageing policy across the European Union.
Source: Alan Walker and Tony Maltby, 'Active ageing: a strategic policy solution to demographic ageing in the European Union', International Journal of Social Welfare, Volume 21 Issue Supplement s1
Links: Abstract
Date: 2012-Oct
A study found that the number of people aged 50-59 who were socially excluded from decent housing, public transport, and local amenities had risen sharply over a six-year period. Over 1 in 6 people in their fifties (18 per cent) were socially excluded in two of more areas of their life in 2008 – up from 13 per cent in 2002. But among those aged 85 or older, the incidence of social exclusion had fallen from 48 per cent to 38 per cent over the same period.
Source: Dylan Kneale, Is Social Exclusion Still Important for Older People?, International Longevity Centre – UK
Links: Report | ILC press release (1) | ILC press release (2)
Date: 2012-Sep
A think-tank report said that the coalition government's plans to digitize public services could prevent 5.4 million older people – over half of all people aged 65 or above – from accessing vital services such as their state pension. The report supported the greater use of the internet to deliver more personalized, cheaper, and speedier public services: but it said that the government needed to pay special attention to older people, who often preferred face-to-face contact when carrying out activities such as paying bills, grocery shopping, or banking.
Source: Sarah Fink, Simple Things, Done Well: Making practical progress on digital engagement and inclusion, Policy Exchange
Links: Report | Policy Exchange press release
Date: 2012-Sep
An article examined policy actors' views about the issues, progress, and shortcomings associated with securing age equality in the delivery of public services in Wales. Although the 'citizen voice' model was viewed as being suited to the social and political context of Wales, there were significant barriers to it working effectively for older people.
Source: Ian Jones, 'Effective public service delivery for older people: exploring the views of policy actors in Wales', Contemporary Wales, Volume 25 Number 1
Links: Abstract
Date: 2012-Aug
A think-tank report said that there was a business case for companies to do more to support older people's participation in the local community. It recommended that companies embed community engagement into their business models and thereby benefit commercially, while also increasing their positive social impact.
Source: Louise Bazalgette, Matt Grist, and Phillida Cheetham, Ageing Sociably, Demos
Links: Report | Summary | Demos press release
Date: 2012-Jul
Date: 2012-Jun
A briefing presented preliminary results of a study on the role of grandparents in family life in Europe. Grandparents were more likely to be poor in terms of wealth than people of the same age who were not grandparents, with around 1 in 4 grandparents in the bottom 20 per cent of the wealth distribution.
Source: Karen Glaser and Giorgio di Gessa, Grandparenting in Europe: Main study – Preliminary Findings Briefing, Grandparents Plus
Links: Briefing | Grandparents Plus press release
Date: 2012-Jun
A research project examined what well-being meant to older people, and how it was produced. Families could be a source of support and security: but for some they could also involve difficult and painful relationships, distance, and estrangement. Good relationships with adult children could contribute to well-being, and maintaining satisfactory relationships was recognized as important. Health also featured as an important factor: chronic ill-health had not only physical effects, but also emotional and psychological impacts. However, being able to draw on experiences gained over a lifetime, learning from past mistakes, or reflecting on the benefit of hindsight, was a personal resource for some.
Source: Lizzie Ward, Marian Barnes, and Beatrice Gahagan, Well-Being in Old Age: Findings from participatory research, University of Brighton/Age Concern
Links: Report
Date: 2012-Jun
Date: 2012-Jun
A report said that nearly one-third of Europeans would be aged 65 or over by 2060. Having more people living longer posed 'significant challenges' for European economies and welfare systems. Based on existing policies, age-related public expenditure (on pensions, health, and long-term care) was projected to rise by 4.1 percentage points of national income between 2010 and 2060 – from 25 per cent to around 29 per cent of national income. Spending on pensions alone was projected to rise from 11.3 per cent to nearly 13 per cent of national income by 2060.
Source: The 2012 Ageing Report: Economic and budgetary projections for the 27 EU Member States (2010-2060), European Commission
Links: Report | European Commission press release | European Union press release
Date: 2012-May
A think-tank report said that an 'intergenerational democratic deficit' was emerging, whereby young cohorts were marginalized within the democratic process – with obvious negative implications for young people, but also for the legitimacy of representative democracy more generally. Although it might be premature or sensationalist to proclaim the rise of a 'gerontocracy', it was clear that young people had become relatively disenfranchised, both by the ageing of the electorate and by wider features of the democratic process that appeared to favour older cohorts.
Source: Craig Berry, The Rise of Gerontocracy? Addressing the intergenerational democratic deficit, Intergenerational Foundation
Links: Report | Intergenerational Foundation press release
Date: 2012-May
A collection of essays examined different aspects of intergenerational justice.
Source: Clare Coatman and Guy Shrubsole (with Ben Little and Shiv Malik) (eds.), Regeneration, Lawrence & Wishart
Links: Text of book
Date: 2012-May
A report said that the experience of ageing in the United Kingdom was poor compared with other European Union countries, with older people in the UK being the loneliest, poorest, and most concerned about age discrimination.
Source: Louise Bazalgette, Bryanna Hahn, and Marley Morris, Ageing Across Europe, WRVS
Links: Report | WRVS press release | Telegraph report
Date: 2012-May
A report said that older people were a benefit, rather than a burden, to the economy and society, and that the benefits of living longer would outweigh the additional health and social care costs of population ageing. In future decades, greater participation by people in their 60s and 70s in formal and informal work, alongside additional decreases in the number of life years spent with major disabilities, could increase national income by up to 10 per cent. A linked paper examined public awareness of, and attitudes to, population ageing.
Source: David Taylor and Jennifer Gill, Active Ageing: Live Longer and Prosper? Towards realising a second demographic dividend in 21st century Europe, UCL School of Pharmacy | Dylan Kneale, Mark Mason, and Sally-Marie Bamford, Population Ageing: Pomp or Circumstance, International Longevity Centre – UK
Links: UCL press release | Paper
Date: 2012-May
A paper said that older people should expect to work longer and draw on their property wealth to help fund care costs. Older citizens had a responsibility to remain in the labour market, where possible, to enable skills retention and minimize the fiscal burdens on taxpayers: alongside this, older people should have a right to support from employers, and society more generally, to enable longer working lives. Older people should have a right to remain in their own home: but it was fair that older people drew on their property wealth to help fund care costs. Older people had a responsibility to remain active in their communities: many older people were eager to volunteer in later life, and opportunities to volunteer needed to be flexible, enjoyable, and oriented towards utilizing the skills that older people had developed during their working lives.
Source: Retirement in Flux: Changing perceptions of retirement and later life, International Longevity Centre – UK
Links: Paper | ILC press release
Date: 2012-May
A study examined how older people sought to maintain a sense of well-being, often in circumstances where this was difficult; what helped them do this; and what got in the way of being well.
Source: Lizzie Ward, Marian Barnes, and Beatrice Gahagan, Well-Being in Old Age: Findings from participatory research, University of Brighton and Age Concern
Date: 2012-Apr
An article examined the effects that the changing dependency ratio might have on intergenerational relations in Europe. Although evidence was found of decreasing legitimacy of welfare for elderly people, this did not point to increasing intergenerational conflict.
Source: Thomas Emery, 'Intergenerational conflict: evidence from Europe', Journal of Population Ageing, Volume 5 Number 1
Links: Abstract
Date: 2012-Mar
A paper examined whether population ageing in developed (OECD) countries had led to patterns of welfare spending that were biased towards elderly people; whether increasing political power by elderly people was a main causal factor behind these processes; and which particular countries were the most (and the least) pro-elderly biased.
Source: Pieter Vanhuysse, Does Population Aging Drive Up Pro-Elderly Social Spending?, Research Paper 7, European Social Observatory (Brussels)
Links: Paper
Date: 2012-Feb
A paper outlined some of the challenges in obtaining participation from older sample members in a survey that was not specifically tailored to older people; provided evidence of the relative response propensity of older people in such a survey; and provided experimental evidence of potential influences on age-related response propensity.
Source: Peter Lynn, The Propensity of Older Respondents to Participate in a General Purpose Survey, Understanding Society Working Paper 2012-03, Institute for Social and Economic Research (University of Essex)
Links: Working paper | Abstract
Date: 2012-Feb
A series of reports examined the views of a wide range of social groups on their experiences of getting older.
Source: Sally Knocker, Perspectives on Ageing: Lesbians, Gay Men and Bisexuals, Joseph Rowntree Foundation | Manjit Kaur Nijjar, Perspectives on Ageing in South Asian Families, Joseph Rowntree Foundation | Pauline Lane, Siobhan Spencer, and Muzelley McCready, Perspectives on Ageing in Gypsy Families, Joseph Rowntree Foundation | Cally Ward, Perspectives on Ageing with a Learning Disability, Joseph Rowntree Foundation | Dot Weaks, Heather Wilkinson, Agnes Houston, and James McKillop, Perspectives on Ageing with Dementia, Joseph Rowntree Foundation
Links: Report (1) | Report (2) | Report (3) | Report (4) | Report (5)
Date: 2012-Feb
A research note examined the 'active ageing' phenomenon in a European context. It drew a distinction between 'chronological ageing' and 'social ageing' – the latter being a social construct involving expectations as well as institutional constraints in respect of how older people acted as they aged. The active ageing movement was linked to social ageing: with rising average life expectancy, older people were expected to continue to participate longer in the formal labour market as well as in other productive activities.
Source: Asghar Zaidi and Eszter Zolyomi, Active Ageing, Research Note 6/2011, Social Situation Observatory (European Commission)
Links: Research note
Date: 2012-Feb
A report examined the age management practices of companies in Europe in light of restructuring undergone during the global economic recession. It looked at policy in relation to the retention of older workers (aged 50 or more) in employment at national and establishment levels in 9 European Union states (including the United Kingdom).
Source: Chris van Stolk, Impact of the Recession on Age Management Policies, European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions
Links: Report
Date: 2012-Jan
A report said that age-related discrimination and stereotyping remain 'rooted' in society. Just over one-third of survey respondents said that they had been shown some age-related prejudice in the previous year.
Source: Daniel Sweiry and Maxine Willitts, Attitudes to Age in Britain 2010/11, In-House Research 7, Department for Work and Pensions
Links: Report | DWP press release | Telegraph report
Date: 2012-Jan
A new book examined dominant interpretations of transitions as they related to ageing and the life course.
Source: Amanda Grenier, Transitions and the Lifecourse: Challenging the constructions of 'growing old', Policy Press
Links: Summary
Date: 2012-Jan
A survey found that many young people were dissatisfied with their portrayal in television and radio programmes, and that older viewers were concerned at the under-representation of middle-aged and older women.
Source: Clarissa White, Gareth Morrell, Clare Luke, and Penny Young (with David Bunker), Serving All Ages: The views of the audience and experts, Creative Diversity Network
Links: Report | BBC press release | Guardian report
Date: 2012-Jan
