Aging and Social Policy in the United States guides students through an exploration of social policies and policymaking that address the needs of older adults and their families. It situates the experiences of older adults in the context of their environment, examining social welfare policies that affect the rights and interests of older adults. The book begins with an introductory unit, providing a foundation for the book, defining key terms, describing how to analyze the impacts of a policy on a population, and examining the ways in which policy is positioned within societal assumptions. Utilizing the life course perspective, the middle three units of this book situate individual biological and psychological challenges of aging in the context of how they are addressed by individuals, families, and societies, identifying the strengths and challenges of existing and proposed social policies at each of these levels. The concluding unit provides comparative insights as to how aging issues are addressed in a sample of countries around the world. Aging and Social Policy in the United States provides undergraduate and graduate students with critical knowledge and perspectives on the complexities of addressing the needs of an aging population.

This work covers theoretical developments and issues influencing the study of adult ageing. It explores contemporary trends in social policy drawing on the experience of ageing in the USA, Europe and an increasingly global environment. Feminist perspectives on ageing are also covered.

With the collective knowledge of expert contributors in the field, The International Handbook on Ageing and Public Policy explores the challenges arising from the ageing of populations across the globe. With an expansive look at the topic, this com

The mythical 'demographic timebomb' can be defused through policies that reduce inequalities between and within generations.

Greater longevity is an indicator of human progress in general. Increased life expectancy and lower fertility rates are changing the population structure worldwide in a major way: the proportion of older persons is rapidly increasing, a process known as population ageing. The process is inevitable and is already advanced in developed countries and progressing quite rapidly in developing ones. The 2007 Survey analyses the implications of population ageing for social and economic development around the world, while recognising that it offers both challenges and opportunities. Among the most pressing issues is that arising from the prospect of a smaller labour force having to support an increasingly larger older population. Paralleling increased longevity are the changes in intergenerational relationships that may affect the provision of care and income security for older persons, particularly in developing countries where family transfers play a major role. At the same time, it is also necessary for societies to fully recognise and better harness the productive and social contributions that older persons can make but are in many instances prevented from making. The Survey argues that the challenges are not insurmountable, but that societies everywhere need to put in place the policies required to confront those challenges effectively and to ensure an adequate standard of living for each of their members, while respecting and promoting the contribution and participation of all.

This volume tackles a number of popular misconceptions about the social and economic impact of an aging population. It emphasizes the specific demographic and policy changes taking place in Canada and focuses on trends in social policy that affect pensions, healthcare, and retirement. It provides a critical look at how an apocalyptic approach to the aging population is being used by the conservative parties to dismantle the Canadian welfare state. It also examines the many ways in which intergenerational relationships are changing and challenges the popular image of the elderly population as a burden on the younger generations.

Although demographic change has been a widely discussed topic for decades, its scope, social impact and related policy responses leave us with many unresolved social issues. Demographic change is a reality for all European societies but the ways in which it is taking place differ from country to country. Active ageing both as a concept and policy response to the demographic ageing of populations has been widely debated, researched and utilised, informing both policy and practice, and providing a common narrative framework to ageing. However, there continues to be a lack of clarity around the precise meaning of ‘active ageing’. This book explores the way in which social work is critically engaging with the theme of active ageing, in light of, or maybe as a reaction to, the policy responses witnessed within the context of large-scale and rapid demographic change. This book was originally published as a special issue of the European Journal of Social Work.