Statistics for Sociology: Demography - Ageing Population

-It is not a homogenous group - huge differences across age, sex, social class, location, family.

-However, society often treats old people as the same and as a 'burden'.

-Grandparenting - children are more likely to know their grandparents, be looked after by them or even be brought up by them.

-Economic Impact - family pressure to care for elderly relatives may impact on child-centredness.

1. Couples who survive into their 70s, will mean health problems are more likely to appear, but such couples are more likely to stay at home:

-Only 3.7% of the elderly lived in sheltered housing or residential houses in 2011.

-This has been caused by the ageing population, and statistics show that married/cohabiting spouses have increased over time, from 52.6% in 2001 to 56.8% in 2011.

-When ill health and disability become a problem for one member of the couple, the other is likely to become the primary carer (with support).

2. Elderly women end up in single-person households - Deborah Chambers calls this 'the feminisation of later life'.

3. 'pivot generation' (also known as 'sandwich generation') - women end up caring for elderly relatives and their own children at the same time.

Number of Dependents or Non-Working Age Group

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Population aged between 15 to 64 years

-Women generally live longer than men.

-There are regional differences - the south has higher life expectancy than the north, for example.

-The better off live longer than the poorer.

-The State Pension system currently being funded on a 'pay as you go' basis means contributions of the current workforce pay for state pensions.

-This means that there is likely to be greater pressure on the NHS and home capacity, as well as a greater tax burden on a shrinking number of future workers to pay for pensions of a fast-growing number of future elderly people.

-Likely caused by economic pressures - parents and their adult children may not have the economic resources to pay for private residential care homes.

-Living alone can also be dangerous for the elderly.

-This could be caused by an increasing number of elderly people using communication technologies to keep in contact with extended kin - although this is unlikely to be the only factor.

-This can create inequality among the sexes - economically and socially, as it is often women caring for elderly relatives and this can create financial hardship for them.

-Interactionists also say this can create social conflict - as the elderly are prioritised over the upbringing of children.

1. Beanpole families - more generations alive at the same but fewer children:

-Beanpole families have been on the rise in the last 20 years, typically families have become 4 generational

-This has likely been caused by the ageing of the population, as well as an increasing tendency of women to pursue both higher education and a career, plus a consequent decline in fertility and availability of divorce.

2. More dual-earner families are being supported by grandparents providing childcare:

-RIAS (2012) estimated that 5.8 million grandparents currently look after their grandchildren regularly for an average of 10 hours per week and that 47% of the nation's grandparents are aged over 50.

-This is because grandparents today live longer, living more healthy and active lifestyles compared with previous generations.

-Grandparents make a significant contribution to parenting and the socialisation process - biggest example being providing childcare.

-According to Galim & Slim (2013), grandmothers are putting in a greater number of informal childcare hours than grandfathers.

3. More single-person households - 3 times as many elderly women than men:

-68% of women make up this household type aged 65 and above, largely as women tend to live longer than men and marry men who are older.

-This has led to high levels of geographic mobility, smaller families, a lower birth rate, and same-sex couples.

-All of these factors mean there may be less family support for these households in the future.

-This can create social conflict, which can lead to parents becoming less child-centred.

-This can also lead the elderly to live with relatives, altering the quality of family relationships.

-Dependency ratio impact.

-Changing pension policy - retirement age increased - impacts 'grandparenting'.

-Impact on town planning and allocation of resources - for example, more care homes than housing for young people.

-Less maternity provision - more geriatric provision.