1. Sociology
Demographics
of Aging

4. What is Sociology? so·ci·ol·o·gy /ˌsōsēˈäləjē/ noun
The study of the development, structure, and functioning of human society.
The study of social problems.

5. What is Demography? de·mog·ra·phy /diˈmägrəfē/ noun
The study of statistics such as births, deaths, income, or the incidence of disease, which illustrate the changing structure of human populations
The composition of a particular human population

6. Demographic Transition

7. Population Pyramids

11. 1. Entitlement Reform

12. 1. Entitlement Reform

13. 1. Entitlement Reform

14. 1. Entitlement Reform

15. 1. Entitlement Reform Austerity Measures
Increase retirement age (more in labor force)
Raise taxes on working individuals
Reduce services (public pension benefits, social security, health care, etc.)
Cost-effective but unpopular. See: Greece.

16. 2. Promote Fertility

17. I hate to tell you, but 2 is just breaking even.
2. Promote Fertility
I hate to tell you, but 2 is just breaking even.

18. 2. Promote Fertility Family Support Policies
Family allowances  government cash payments to families on the birth of a child to compensate them for a loss of income or increase in expenses
Provide tax credits or tax benefits to help defray the costs of children

19. 2. Promote Fertility Family-Friendly Employment Policies
Measures aim to ease the burden of combining work & family responsibilities
Providing free or subsidized child care  allow mothers to work
Tax breaks for child care
Comprehensive state-supported child-care system (Sweden)
EXPENSIVE – with limited or no effectiveness shown where tried, so far.

20. 3. Promote Immigration

21. 3. Promote Immigration Immigration Policies
Allow more working-age immigrants from developing countries to fill the labor gap in countries with aging populations  “replacement migration”
(1st Gen) Immigrants tend to have higher TFR than “native stock” or more established generations  have more children
Explicit aspect of U.S. immigration policy (under Reagan – to forestall the crisis we now face again)

22. 3. Promote Immigration Immigration Challenges
Downward pressure on wages
Racial tensions
Language barriers
Conflict of cultural values
Additional strain on entitlement programs until economically established

23. What To Do? Reform social welfare programs (austerity)?
Encourage women to have more children?
Increase young/working-age immigration?
Something else?