Do pensions foster education? An empirical perspective

The paper examines the effect of population ageing on public education spending. On the one hand, ageing is expected to have a negative effect on education, as an increasing number of retirees results in ‘intergenerational conflict’ and, hence, the condemnation of education expenditure. On the other hand, ageing, in combination with pay-as-you-go pension systems, offers incentives for the working-age generation to invest in the public education of the young in order to ‘reap’ the benefits (that is, higher income tax/contributions) of their greater future productivity. Empirical evidence derived from the application of a fixed effects approach to panel data for OECD countries shows that the increasing share of elderly people has a non-linear effect on education spending. This indicates a certain degree of intergenerational conflict. Nevertheless, we find that future population ageing, which reinforces the mechanism linking public education and pensions, reflects positively on education expenditure. Furthermore, by disaggregating total education expenditure by educational levels, we observe that this effect is led by levels of non-compulsory education, probably as a reflection of the direct connection to labor productivity.     

老龄化下人均经济增长率变动的实证分析

文章从曼昆、罗默和韦尔的总量生产函数出发,在经济增长模型中加入老龄化因素,据此分析了老龄化所致人口结构变化对于人均经济增长率变动的影响,并对所建构的模型进行了检验,结果表明自1978-2004年老龄化因素下的人均经济增长变动率一直为正,但增长呈现下降趋势.同时对其变动作出了预测分析,结果表明我国在2035年以前处于人均经济增长变动率为正的人口红利期,在2036-2055年则处于人口亏损期.针对分析结论,本文提出了充分利用人口红利期的政策建议和未来研究的方向.     

To defer or not defer? UK state pension and work decisions in a lifecycle model

The UK state pension (which depends only on age) includes an option to defer take up which yields either a subsequent lump sum or higher weekly pension. We analyse the joint decisions on pension deferral and intertemporal labour supply/participation in a lifecycle setting. We show that deferral is purely a financial decision, but the impact of deferral on work decisions depends on preferences, wage rates, non-labour income and initial wealth. To exactly characterize this, we use a quasilinear utility function and provide calibrated simulations. We also discuss the choice between a lump sum or increased weekly pension.     

Profiling the ageing wellness consumers in the retailing context

In the context of retailing, ‘wellness consumption’ cannot be defined by a product or service category, but by shopping motives. As previous research strongly suggests our consumption patterns to be influenced both by age and generational effects, in the current study we explore the wellness orientations of consumers at different ages/belonging to different generations as they manifest in everyday practices, especially in the context of retailing. Drawing on that, we aim to shed light on implications of the population ageing on retailing-related wellness industry. The main focus is on Baby Boomers. Starting with a random sample of 18–75-year-olds (N=1600), we extracted six dimensions connected to different aspects of wellness. Next, the dimensions extracted among aged 18–75 and 55?64 were fed into respective cluster analyses which both yielded seven segments. The differences in the composition of wellness dimensions indicate that age-/generation-specific segmentation is warranted and will return in more accurate estimations of the market potential and more targeted marketing activities. Examination of the parallel typologies enabled us to gain a broader understanding of differences between generations. There was an obvious age-/generation-based pattern in the cluster memberships in the 18–75 sample, all clusters offering different opportunities for the wellness market.     

Clothing as an environment for older adults' successful ageing

This research tested a conceptual model for proximity of clothing to self (PCS) in relation to age identity, self‐actualization, psychological well‐being, self‐assessed health, sex and chronological age among older adults, aged 65 and over, within the human ecological perspective. A mail survey was sent to a national random sample of 1700 older adults in the US resulting in 195 usable respondents in the final sample. The respondents returned two completed questionnaires, which were (1) Clothing: A Resource for Successful Aging? (to measure PCS, age identity and demographic variables) and (2) Personal Orientation Inventory (to measure self‐actualization). The results indicated that older adults' psychological well‐being, one component of successful ageing, was directly affected by their self‐assessed health, age identity and self‐actualization. PCS indirectly influenced individuals' psychological well‐being in a slightly negative way in later life. In sum, clothing may be used as a needs satisfier for different levels of needs or related more closely with needs in addition to self‐actualization needs for older adults. Further research should be conducted to explore relationships among PCS, different levels of human needs, clothing‐related variables and psychological well‐being for this age group. In practice, the effort should be given to teach the use of clothing (or other human‐built objects) as a tool or need satisfier to contribute to success in a person's later life by offering some educational or training programmes through local senior community centres or universities.     

Meanings of leisure for older people: an Australian study of line dancing

In Australia and in many parts of the world, older people participate in line dancing. Our phenomenological study explored whether attending a regular line dancing class might offer a group of older people opportunities for active and successful ageing. Our research investigated the meanings and practices fostered in a community line dancing class in Melbourne. We gathered data via an interview with the teacher of the group, observation of a class and two focus group interviews with 25 members. Data were analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis that is reported thematically under headings of: Belief in the efficacy of line dancing, Physical and emotional benefits, YouTube clips as instructional reinforcement and promotion, and Socialising. The findings show that participation in the class offered older student’s opportunities for dance and music engagement, active and successful ageing, health and well-being, social connection and purposeful leisure. The teacher of the class modelled serious and successful leisure and advocates for dance as holistic training for older people. We position our participants on a continuum of leisure engagement that ranges from the casual to the serious. Further research is required to support arguments for the efficacy of dance as a leisure pursuit for older adults.     

北京市老龄产业发展现状、问题与对策研究

面分析了北京市老龄产业发展的现状 ,探讨了老龄产业发展存在的问题 ,提出了相关的政策建议     

意大利应对老龄化问题的对策及其启示

在全球老龄化的趋势下，意大利也面临着老龄化严重问题，其老龄化率居欧洲各国之首。意大利在应对老龄化方面采取了一些积极的具体做法，积累了经验，如，改革养老金制度，出台灵活的就业市场政策以及提供老年职业培训等。目前，我国也正面临着老龄化问题的严峻挑战，意大利的做法和经验可为我国决策者提供参考。     

Skill transferability,regret and mobility

After graduation many students start working in sectors not related to their field of study or participate in training targeted at work in other sectors. In this article, we look at mobility immediately after graduation from the perspective that educational choices have been made when these pupils had little experience of the actual working life in these professions. We develop a model where students accumulate partially transferable human capital but also learn about their professional preferences at the university and during the first years in the labour market. As a consequence of this newly acquired insight, these young workers might realize that working in another occupational field would better fit their preferences, although they are better equipped to work in their own field. The empirical analysis reveals that if wages are 1% lower due to lower skill transferability, the probability that a graduate who regrets his choice actually switches decreases by 1.4 percentage points, while those who switch on average take 0.3 months additional education.