Policies for Active Aging and Their Family-Related Assumptions and Consequences

Active aging—encouraging greater economic and social productivity of older adults—has become the dominant paradigm in public policies concerning older people in the Western world. This chapter identifies contradictions within the paradigm, and a failure to adequately situate it within the family lives of older people, drawing attention to the relational circumstances that shape opportunities to age actively. The chapter suggests that the active aging paradigm does not adequately recognize the intersections—and contradictions—between active aging policies, family policies, and national work/care regimes. The authors focus on the (lack of) alignment in aspirations pertaining to employment and unpaid work, and their gendered implications. Comparing Australia and Sweden, they conclude that the current employment and family policy settings generally serve to support the active aging agenda of improving labor market participation in later life in Sweden. The Australian case illustrates that encouraging greater economic and social productivity of older adults is problematic if it is inadequately situated within the family lives and life courses of older people. Successfully and sustainably encouraging older people into paid work requires recognition of family contributions as forms of social and economic productivity. Gender equality in economic participation in later life necessitates investment in gender equality earlier in women’s lives, when gendered patterns of economic participation emerge. Lack of alignment in aspirations pertaining to aging policy and family policy has gendered implications, which can undermine the success of active aging policies and cause economic disadvantage to women as they age over the life course.