Aging America
A Review on the Growth of Aging Population in America
The data
· The U.S. population age 65 and over has grown year after year, with the female portion of that population dominating the group.
· The percentage of all those age 65 and older, the proportion of whites declined steadily from 1981 to 2002.
· The proportion of blacks and American Indian/Alaska Natives remained fairly constant.
· The proportion of Asian/Pacific Islanders, in contrast, has grown significantly in the same period.
· As a percentage of all persons age 65 or older, Asian/Pacific Islanders grew from 0.93% up to 2.80% accounting for nearly all the decrease in the relative size of the white population.
Analysis
Growing the aging population comparing with the others age groups have some positive and negative points. About the positive points it could be said that the presence of older members of family helps to improve intergeneration relations; this process can lead to “primary” social support in the family for children as Peter Berger set it out in The Social Construction of Reality (1991).
But one problem would decrease the positive impacts of presence of this group. The first problem is historical and it relates to the changes of family pattern in the United States.
The change of family pattern from Extended to Nuclear leads to changes of its members’ role. Goode in The Family (1964) analyzes that after World War II the form of family was changed. He also believes that industrial revolution influenced in the process very latter. The United States in 1870s joined to the process of industrialization (Landes, 1969). Goode (1964), discusses that one of the consequences of isolating family, from extended form to nuclear, is neglecting aging members like grand parents. In the family structure that mother and father work out of the home and children study in school what do they need the grand parents?
The data of this report also shows that the population of women is growing more than men. This growth may resulted less social support for aging women in the patrimonial society of America; because if aging population be regarded less than the other age groups, the women consists much of them.
According to the data the growth of whites are less than the other ethnic groups like blacks, American Indian/Alaska Natives and Asian/Pacific Islanders. The bitter history of whites’ racism and discriminations against the ethnical groups especially blacks would result that there is no great support for the aging population of these groups, too.
The last point is about the marriage condition of the aging groups in the future. A report of Census Bureau declares that: “Householders living alone had become the most common specific household structure in 2000, replacing the 1990 combination of householder, spouse, and natural and/or adopted children” (Hobbs, 2005: 1). This is a warning for future because it means that current generation will be the aging population of next years, without family support. Social planners of the United States should think about this problem more.
References
1- Goode, W, 1964, foundation of modern sociology series: The Family, London, Prentice- Hall.
2- SSDAN, 2002, US population structure: an aging America, Module 4.
3- Berger, P and Luckmann, T, 1991, The Social Construction of Reality: A Treatise in the Sociology of knowledge, New York, Penguin Books.
4- Hobbs, F, 2oo5, Examining American Household Composition: 1990 and 2000, U.S. census bureau, Washington DC, U.S. government printing office.
America’s population is going to be a gray one. Although this idea may seem exaggerated but this is a scientific prediction according to the census burse of the United States.
“According to the 2000 Census, the United States population is older than it has ever been. This graying of America occurred gradually over the latter half of the twentieth century and it will continue for much of the first half of the 21st century. This section examines both the absolute and relative increase in the size of the elderly population” (SSDAN, 2002:2).
Data Warehouse, also declared that the U.S. population increased by about 59 million between 1981 and 2002, representing a 26 percent increase in the total population. There are interesting points in its statistics that shows the situation of genders, races and ethical groups in the time.
“According to the 2000 Census, the United States population is older than it has ever been. This graying of America occurred gradually over the latter half of the twentieth century and it will continue for much of the first half of the 21st century. This section examines both the absolute and relative increase in the size of the elderly population” (SSDAN, 2002:2).
Data Warehouse, also declared that the U.S. population increased by about 59 million between 1981 and 2002, representing a 26 percent increase in the total population. There are interesting points in its statistics that shows the situation of genders, races and ethical groups in the time.
The data
· The U.S. population age 65 and over has grown year after year, with the female portion of that population dominating the group.
· The percentage of all those age 65 and older, the proportion of whites declined steadily from 1981 to 2002.
· The proportion of blacks and American Indian/Alaska Natives remained fairly constant.
· The proportion of Asian/Pacific Islanders, in contrast, has grown significantly in the same period.
· As a percentage of all persons age 65 or older, Asian/Pacific Islanders grew from 0.93% up to 2.80% accounting for nearly all the decrease in the relative size of the white population.
Analysis
Growing the aging population comparing with the others age groups have some positive and negative points. About the positive points it could be said that the presence of older members of family helps to improve intergeneration relations; this process can lead to “primary” social support in the family for children as Peter Berger set it out in The Social Construction of Reality (1991).
But one problem would decrease the positive impacts of presence of this group. The first problem is historical and it relates to the changes of family pattern in the United States.
The change of family pattern from Extended to Nuclear leads to changes of its members’ role. Goode in The Family (1964) analyzes that after World War II the form of family was changed. He also believes that industrial revolution influenced in the process very latter. The United States in 1870s joined to the process of industrialization (Landes, 1969). Goode (1964), discusses that one of the consequences of isolating family, from extended form to nuclear, is neglecting aging members like grand parents. In the family structure that mother and father work out of the home and children study in school what do they need the grand parents?
The data of this report also shows that the population of women is growing more than men. This growth may resulted less social support for aging women in the patrimonial society of America; because if aging population be regarded less than the other age groups, the women consists much of them.
According to the data the growth of whites are less than the other ethnic groups like blacks, American Indian/Alaska Natives and Asian/Pacific Islanders. The bitter history of whites’ racism and discriminations against the ethnical groups especially blacks would result that there is no great support for the aging population of these groups, too.
The last point is about the marriage condition of the aging groups in the future. A report of Census Bureau declares that: “Householders living alone had become the most common specific household structure in 2000, replacing the 1990 combination of householder, spouse, and natural and/or adopted children” (Hobbs, 2005: 1). This is a warning for future because it means that current generation will be the aging population of next years, without family support. Social planners of the United States should think about this problem more.
References
1- Goode, W, 1964, foundation of modern sociology series: The Family, London, Prentice- Hall.
2- SSDAN, 2002, US population structure: an aging America, Module 4.
3- Berger, P and Luckmann, T, 1991, The Social Construction of Reality: A Treatise in the Sociology of knowledge, New York, Penguin Books.
4- Hobbs, F, 2oo5, Examining American Household Composition: 1990 and 2000, U.S. census bureau, Washington DC, U.S. government printing office.
posted by chirani @ 3:15 AM
3 comments
