Pensioners tend to have lower incomes, and a higher risk of income
poverty, than adults of working age. But measures of living standards,
especially in the Poverty and Social Exclusion survey (PSE), often suggest
that older people are less ‘deprived’ than their relative low income would
lead us to expect.
A reanalyses of PSE confirmed that older people report lower levels of
deprivation than younger people on the same income, across the age range
above 50. Different indicators point in different directions, however.
More objective indicators point to lower standards among older people,
more subjective indicators point to less deprivation among older people.
Longitudinal evidence from BHPS indicates, on the other hand, that people
get more deprived as they grow older, when compared to current standards
(using fixed effects models). This ageing effect is counterbalanced by an
opposite cohort effect (using random effects or pooled cross-sectional
models).
The later people were born, the more deprived they are; the earlier they
were born, the less deprived they are. But as people grow older, their
deprivation level increases. The current generation of older people have
the advantage of having been born a long time ago (cohort), but this is
offset by the disadvantage of having reached high age (ageing). The
strength of the two processes, and the balance between them, varies
between deprivation indicators.
Presented by:
Richard Berthoud, ISER (joint with Morten Blekesaune)
Date & time:
April 5, 2006 12:00 pm - April 4, 2006 11:00 pm
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