IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v18y2021i17p9156-d625733.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Theoretical Challenges and Social Inequalities in Active Ageing

Author

Listed:
  • Per H. Jensen

    (Department of Politics and Society, CARMA, Aalborg University, 9220 Aalborg, Denmark)

  • Jakob Skjøtt-Larsen

    (Department of Sociology and Social Work, CASTOR, Aalborg University, 9220 Aalborg, Denmark)

Abstract

Active ageing has been discussed in international political organisations and among researchers as a major means for combatting the challenges of demographic ageing. This study aims to make a critical-theoretical and empirical assessment of the active ageing concept, challenging the active ageing discourse from two different angles. First, an assessment of the theoretical framework of active ageing shows that the conceptual framework is undertheorised, lacks conceptual and analytical clarity, and fails to propose clear contributing factors and barriers. The second part presents an empirical analysis of the concept of active ageing guided by the following research question: is active ageing realistic—and for whom? Using Danish data subjected to multiple correspondence analysis, it is found that active ageing at the individual level is preconditioned by health, education, having good finances, etc. Furthermore, a Matthew effect of accumulated advantage is found; that is, older adults who are blessed in one sphere of life are also blessed in others, and such inequalities in old age are the outcomes of social life biographies (i.e., cumulative advantages/disadvantages over the life course). Thus, empirical findings indicate that active ageing may be an elusive goal for a large segment of older adults.

Suggested Citation

  • Per H. Jensen & Jakob Skjøtt-Larsen, 2021. "Theoretical Challenges and Social Inequalities in Active Ageing," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(17), pages 1-16, August.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:17:p:9156-:d:625733
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/17/9156/pdf
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/17/9156/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Dale Dannefer, 2003. "Cumulative Advantage/Disadvantage and the Life Course: Cross-Fertilizing Age and Social Science Theory," The Journals of Gerontology: Series B, The Gerontological Society of America, vol. 58(6), pages 327-337.
    2. Sara Marsillas & Liesbeth Donder & Tinie Kardol & Sofie Regenmortel & Sarah Dury & Dorien Brosens & An-Sofie Smetcoren & Teresa Braña & Jesús Varela, 2017. "Does active ageing contribute to life satisfaction for older people? Testing a new model of active ageing," European Journal of Ageing, Springer, vol. 14(3), pages 295-310, September.
    3. Asghar Zaidi, 2015. "Creating and using the evidence base: the case of the Active Ageing Index," Contemporary Social Science, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 10(2), pages 148-159, June.
    4. Amado, Carla A.F. & São José, José M.S. & Santos, Sérgio P., 2016. "Measuring active ageing: A Data Envelopment Analysis approach," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 255(1), pages 207-223.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Georgiana Cristina TOMA (ROSU) & Gabriela TUCHILUS, 2018. "What Are The Effects Of Active Ageing On Gdp Per Capita?," Proceedings of the INTERNATIONAL MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE, Faculty of Management, Academy of Economic Studies, Bucharest, Romania, vol. 12(1), pages 611-619, November.
    2. Sun, Nan & Yang, Fan, 2021. "Impacts of internal migration experience on health among middle-aged and older adults—Evidence from China," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 284(C).
    3. Song, Jieun & Mailick, Marsha R. & Greenberg, Jan S., 2018. "Health of parents of individuals with developmental disorders or mental health problems: Impacts of stigma," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 217(C), pages 152-158.
    4. Missinne, Sarah & Colman, Elien & Bracke, Piet, 2013. "Spousal influence on mammography screening: A life course perspective," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 98(C), pages 63-70.
    5. Luo, Ye & Zhang, Zhenmei & Gu, Danan, 2015. "Education and mortality among older adults in China," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 127(C), pages 134-142.
    6. Laura Ponce de León & Jean Pierre Lévy Mangin & Soledad Ballesteros, 2020. "Psychosocial Determinants of Quality of Life and Active Aging. A Structural Equation Model," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(17), pages 1-10, August.
    7. Doherty, Elaine E. & Green, Kerry M. & Bugbee, Brittany A., 2024. "From one death to another: The relationship between familial deaths and one’s own mortality risk among an urban Black American cohort," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 363(C).
    8. Pereira, Miguel Alves & Figueira, José Rui & Marques, Rui Cunha, 2020. "Using a Choquet integral-based approach for incorporating decision-maker’s preference judgments in a Data Envelopment Analysis model," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 284(3), pages 1016-1030.
    9. Visser, Mark & Fasang, Anette Eva, 2018. "Educational assortative mating and couples’ linked late-life employment trajectories," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 37, pages 79-90.
    10. Heather M. Rackin, 2017. "Comparing Veteran and Non-veteran Racial Disparities in Mid-life Health and Well-being," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 36(3), pages 331-356, June.
    11. Maclean, Johanna Catherine & Hill, Terrence D., 2015. "Leaving school in an economic downturn and self-esteem across early and middle adulthood," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 37(C), pages 1-12.
    12. Matthias Pannhorst & Florian Dost, 2022. "A Life-Course View on Ageing Consumers: Old-Age Trajectories and Gender Differences," Applied Research in Quality of Life, Springer;International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, vol. 17(2), pages 1157-1180, April.
    13. Popova, Daria & Navicke, Jekaterina, 2019. "The probability of poverty for mothers after childbirth and divorce in Europe: the role of social stratification and tax-benefit policies," EUROMOD Working Papers EM11/19, EUROMOD at the Institute for Social and Economic Research.
    14. Wolfe, Barbara & Song, Jieun & Greenberg, Jan S. & Mailick, Marsha R., 2014. "Ripple effects of developmental disabilities and mental illness on nondisabled adult siblings," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 108(C), pages 1-9.
    15. Hideko Matsuo & Koen Matthijs, 2021. "The life course and subjective well-being across generations – an analysis based on cross-national surveys (2002–2016)," Vienna Yearbook of Population Research, Vienna Institute of Demography (VID) of the Austrian Academy of Sciences in Vienna, vol. 19(1), pages 417-466.
    16. Elena Del Barrio & Sara Marsillas & Tine Buffel & An-Sofie Smetcoren & Mayte Sancho, 2018. "From Active Aging to Active Citizenship: The Role of (Age) Friendliness," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 7(8), pages 1-16, August.
    17. Carroll, Brídín & Walsh, Kieran & Scharf, Thomas & O'Donovan, Diarmuid & Keogh, Sinéad, 2023. "Positive health and ageing policies for older Irish travellers and older people who have experienced homelessness in Ireland: Life-course meanings and determinants," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 336(C).
    18. Seyran Gürsoy Çuhadar, 2020. "Yaşlanan Nüfusa Çözüm Önerisi Olarak Aktif Yaşlanma Yaklaşımı: Eleştiriler ve Olası Endeks için Türkiye Önerileri," Journal of Social Policy Conferences, Istanbul University, Faculty of Economics, vol. 0(79), pages 361-397, December.
    19. Franciely Velozo Aragão & Daiane Maria de Genaro Chiroli & Fernanda Cavicchioli Zola & Emanuely Velozo Aragão & Luis Henrique Nogueira Marinho & Ana Lidia Cascales Correa & João Carlos Colmenero, 2023. "Smart Cities Maturity Model—A Multicriteria Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(8), pages 1-20, April.
    20. Joseph L Saenz & Sadaf Arefi Milani & Silvia Mejía-Arango, 2023. "Gender, Personality, and Cognitive Resilience Against Early-Life Disadvantage," The Journals of Gerontology: Series B, The Gerontological Society of America, vol. 78(5), pages 913-924.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:17:p:9156-:d:625733. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.