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. 2010 Mar;47(Suppl 1):S191–S209. doi: 10.1353/dem.2010.0006

What can we learn from (and about) global aging?

Arie Kapteyn 1,✉
PMCID: PMC5870618  PMID: 21302432

Abstract

Although aging is a global phenomenon, there are large differences across countries in both the speed of aging and the current age composition. Furthermore, countries adopt vastly different policies. This creates a natural laboratory that scientists can use to understand how policies affect outcomes. I discuss under what circumstances data from different countries can be used for inference about policy effects. Although comparable health and retirement data are currently being collected in some 25 countries, the use of such data requires careful modeling of differences in institutions and in response styles across countries.

Keywords: Gross Domestic Product, Differential Item Functioning, Work Disability, Dependency Ratio, Response Consistency

Footnotes

This research was supported by Grant 5P01AG008291 from the National Institute on Aging.

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