Measuring how countries adapt to societal aging

Goldman, Dana P.; Chen, Cynthia; Zissimopoulos, Julie; Rowe, John W.; Antonucci, Toni C.; Berkman, Lisa F.; Supan, A.; Carstensen, Laura L.; Fried, Linda P.; Furstenberg, Frank F.; Jackson, James; Kohli, Martin; Olshansky, Jay; Rehkopf, David H.; Rother, John

doi:10.1073/pnas.1720899115

Cited by 21 publications

(27 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…The Aging Society Index provides a useful metric to assess a country's progress in adapting to demographic transition and how it might remain cohesive, productive, secure, and equitable as its elderly population increases. While the results do not identify specific policies to pursue, strategies employed by the more successful countries may serve as a guide (19). For example, investments that make people healthier and more productive can yield especially high dividends.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 89%

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Multidimensional comparison of countries’ adaptation to societal aging

Chen

Goldman

Zissimopoulos

et al. 2018

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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As long-term changes in life expectancy and fertility drive the emergence of aging societies across the globe, individual countries vary widely in the development of age-relevant policies and programs. While failure to adapt to the demographic transformation carries not only important financial risks but also social risks, most efforts to gauge countries' preparedness focus on economic indicators. Using data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and other sources, we developed a multidimensional Aging Society Index that assesses the status of older populations across five specific domains, including productivity and engagement, well-being, equity, economic and physical security, and intergenerational cohesion. For 18 OECD countries, the results demonstrate substantial diversity in countries' progress in adapting to aging. For any given domain, there are wide differences across countries, and within most countries, there is substantial variation across domains. Overall, Norway and Sweden rank first in adaptation to aging, followed by the United States, The Netherlands, and Japan. Central and eastern European countries rank at the bottom, with huge untapped potential for successful aging. The United States ranks best in productivity and engagement, in the top half for cohesion, and in the middle in well-being, but it ranks third from the bottom in equity. Only well-being and security showed significant between-domain correlation ( = 0.59, = 0.011), strengthening the case for a multidimensional index. Examination of heterogeneity within and across domains of the index can be used to assess the need for, and effectiveness of, various programs and policies and facilitate successful adaptation to the demographic transition.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 89%

“…The need for an index such as we describe and our summary country-specific index ratings have been presented elsewhere in a concise commentary (19).…”

Section: Significancementioning

confidence: 99%

Multidimensional comparison of countries’ adaptation to societal aging

Chen

Goldman

Zissimopoulos

et al. 2018

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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“…First, care policy for older people should explicitly address the affordability of social, health, and financial services to respond to the unmet needs of economically disadvantaged older adults. There is a widening gap among older populations in access to different financial resources . Social security, Medicare, and Medicaid policies should be improved to ensure financial security for older immigrants .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Environmental Factors Associated with Chinese Older Immigrants' Social Engagement

Lai

Lee

et al. 2019

J American Geriatrics Society

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BACKGROUND/ OBJECTIVES Prior research has shown that social engagement is beneficial to older adults' health and well‐being. This study examined the association between environmental factors and social engagement of older Chinese immigrants in the United States. SAMPLE A cross‐sectional data set of Chinese immigrants in the greater Chicago, IL, area (Population Study of Chinese Elderly; n = 3159), was used in this study. DESIGN Multiple regression models were used to test the associations between older adults' engagement in cognitive and social activities and environmental factors, including financial difficulties, social support, neighborhood cohesion, neighborhood disorder, and sense of community. MEASUREMENT Eight questions measuring participants' engagement in cognitive and social activities, a single‐item question measuring financial difficulties, a 12‐item social support measurement, an eight‐item neighborhood cohesion measurement, and a six‐item neighborhood disorder and sense of community scale. RESULTS Having fewer financial difficulties and a cohesive neighborhood is related to a higher level of engagement in both cognitive and social activities. More social support from family and friends and a sense of community are associated with higher levels of social activities engagement, but not cognitive activity engagement. Neighborhood cohesion has a stronger association with social engagement than other environmental factors and most individual‐level factors. Surprisingly, neighborhood disorder is positively related to social activity engagement, which needs further examination. The associations between environmental factors and social engagement showed no significant difference between healthy and unhealthy older adults. CONCLUSION This study highlights the need for policies and programs to promote an active lifestyle among older immigrants by creating facilitative social and physical environments. J Am Geriatr Soc 67:S571–S576, 2019.

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“…Initially various terms have been applied to this desirable state, from successful ageing [1], healthy ageing [2], to active ageing [3]. The origins of these terms are developed from predominantly social or medical science disciplines, and taken up by different countries [4], the Active Ageing Index proposed by the European Union [3], the Ageing Society Index score or Hartford Ageing Index proposed by the United states for OECD countries [5], and the intrinsic capacity measure adopting a life course approach proposed by the World Health Organization in 2016 [6,7]. Such developments are very relevant, since ageing incorporates health as well as social domains involving expects from multidisciplinary backgrounds.…”

Section: Societal Impact Of Population Ageingmentioning

confidence: 99%