John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation April 2010

The MacarThur research NeTwork oN aN agiNg socieTy

aT a gLaNce

• Bythemiddleofthenextdecade,theUnitedStateswillbecomeanagingsociety,withmoreAmericansoverage60thanunderage15.

• The76millionmembersofthebabyboomgenerationwillreachretirementageoverthenextdecade.

• Inthepastcentury,U.S.lifeexpectancyatbirthhasclimbedfrom47to77years.Afterage65,lifeexpectancyhascontinuedtoriseformostAmericans,asseniorsexperiencehealthierandmorevitallivesduetobiomedicalandtechnologicaladvances.

• TheNetworkseekstohelppolicymakersunderstandtheimpactofthesedemographicchangesanddeveloppoliciesandstrategiestooptimizetheopportunitiesforallagesandsocio­economicgroupsinanagingAmerica.

The MacArthur Research Network on an Aging Society is an inter disciplinary group of scholars who are conducting a broad-based analysis of how to help the nation prepare for the challenges and opportunities posed by an aging society. Research focuses on how major societal institutions, including retirement, housing and labor markets, govern-ment and families, will have to change to support the emergence of a productive, equitable aging society.

John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation page 2

BackgrouNd

Tomorrow’sAmericawillbeauniqueagingsocietyforgedbytwocriticalforces:theincreaseindisability­freelifeexpectancyinthe20thcentury,andtheretirementofthebabyboomgenerationoverthenextdecade.WhilesomeanalysisandmuchpoliticaldiscussionhascirculatedaroundthesustainabilityoftheSocialSecurityandMedicareTrustFunds,lessworkhasbeendoneonthemanycriticalissuessurroundingthesocial,economic,andinstitutionalimplicationsofanagingsociety.Questionsinclude:

• Whatwilllifeinbelikefortheelderlyaswellasthemiddle­agedandyoungergenerations?

• HowwilltheagingofAmericaaffectsociety’skeyinstitutions,includingretirement,education,housingandlabormarkets,churches,localcommunities,politicalparties,government,andfamilies?

• Howwillagingimpactthoseinvarioussocioeconomicgroupsdisparately?

TheMacArthurResearchNetworkonanAgingSocietywascreatedin2008witha$3.9milliongrantfromtheFoundation.TheNetworkischairedbyDr.JohnRowe,formerCEOofAetnaandaprofessorattheColumbiaUniversityMailmanSchoolofPublicHealth.Previously,Dr.Roweledtheground­breakingMacArthurResearchNetworkonSuccessfulAging,whichhelped

changeAmerica’sconceptofagingfromaperiodofinevitabledeclinetoamorenuancedandpositiveviewoflifebeyond60andpublishedthebest­sellingbook,Successful Aging.

research TheMesTheResearchNetworkonanAgingSocietyseekstohelppolicymakersunderstandtheimpactofthedemographicchangesanddeveloppoliciesandstrategiesatthelocalandnationallevelsthatwilloptimizetheopportunitiesforallagesandsocioeconomicgroupsinanagingAmerica.

Networkmembersrepresentawiderangeofdisciplines,includinggerontology,

TheMacArthurResearchNetworkonanAgingSociety

psychologyandhealthbehavior,macro­economicsandpublicpolicy,socialepidemiology,cognitiveneuroscience,demography,andagingpolicy.Drawingonthecollectiveexpertiseofits12members,theNetworkfocusesonthreethemes:

• Thepositiveandnegativeimpactofkeyintergenerationalissuesonfamiliesandsociety;

• Thedevelopmentofmeaningfulrolesforolderpeople;and

• Thepotentialeffectsthatthevarioussourcesofdiversityandinequalitiesmayhaveonthestructure,economy,andoverallhealthofanagingsociety.

seLecT research FiNdiNgs

NetworkresearchpublishedinThe Milbank Quarterlyfindsthatcurrentgovernmentprojectionsmaysignificantlyunder­estimatethefuturelifeexpectancyofAmericans.By2050,Americansmaylive3.1to7.9yearslongerthanofficialgovernmentprojections,resultinginsharplyhighercostsforgovernmentprogramsthatserveoldercitizens.

NetworkresearchpublishedinContextsmagazinedebunkssevencommonmythsaboutaging,includingthatpolicymakersmustchoosebetweeninvest­mentsinyouthortheelderlyandthatbeingoldentailsbeingfrail.

NetworkresearchpublishedintheAmerican Journal of Public HealthexploreshoweffectivepreventioncouldsubstantiallyimprovethehealthofolderAmericans.Despiteincreasesinlongevity,suchbenefitscouldbeachievedwithlittleornoadditionallifetimemedicalspending.

Toreadthearticles,goto:www.macfound.org/aging

page 3 www.macfound.org

http://www.agingsocietynetwork.org/

NeTwork MeMBers

dr. John rowe(Chair)Professor,MailmanSchoolofPublicHealth,ColumbiaUniversity

dr. Lisa Berkman Director,CenterforPopulationandDevelopmentStudies,HarvardUniversity

dr. robert Binstock ProfessorofAging,Health,andSociety,CaseWesternReserveUniversity

dr. axel Börsch-supan Director,MannheimResearchInstitutefortheEconomicsofAging,UniversityofMannheim,Germany

dr. John T. cacioppo Tiffany&MargaretBlakeDistinguishedServiceProfessorandDirector,CenterforCognitiveandSocialNeuroscience,UniversityofChicago

dr. Laura L. carstensen ProfessorofPsychologyandDirector,StanfordCenteronLongevity,StanfordUniversity

dr. Linda P. Fried DeanandDeLamarProfessorofPublicHealth,MailmanSchoolofPublicHealth,ColumbiaUniversity

dr. dana P. goldman Director,HealthEconomics,Finance,andOrganization,RAND

dr. James s. Jackson DanielKatzDistinguishedUniversityProfessorofPsychology,ProfessorofHealthBehaviorandHealthEducation,SchoolofPublicHealth,DirectoroftheInstituteforSocialResearch,UniversityofMichigan

dr. Martin kohli ProfessorofSociology,EuropeanUniversityInstitute,Florence,Italy

dr. s. Jay olshansky Professor,SchoolofPublicHealth,UniversityofIllinoisatChicago

John rother ExecutiveVicePresidentforPolicyandStrategy,AARP

John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation April 2010

TheMacArthurResearchNetworkonanAgingSociety

about The Macarthur FoundationTheJohnD.andCatherineT.MacArthurFoundationsupportscreativepeopleandeffectiveinstitutionscommittedtobuildingamorejust,verdant,andpeacefulworld.InadditiontoselectingtheMacArthurFellows,theFoundationworkstodefendhumanrights,advanceglobalconservationandsecurity,makecitiesbetterplaces,andunderstandhowtechnologyisaffectingchildrenandsociety.For more information or to sign-up for our free electronic newsletter, please visit www.macfound.org.

JohnD.andCatherineT.MacArthurFoundation140SouthDearbornSt.,Suite1200,Chicago,Illinois60603­5285Telephone:(312)726­8000Fax:(312)920­6258www.macfound.orgTDD:(312)920­6285

For More information

John roweChair,MacArthurResearchNetworkonanAgingSocietyjwr2108@mail.cumc.columbia.edu

Michael stegmanDirectorofPolicyandHousingmstegman@macfound.org