Demography - Deaths Flashcards
deaths / ageing population
death rate - def
the number of deaths per 1,000 of the population per year
decline in death rate
TRANTER
over 3/4 of the decline from 1870 - 1970 was due to fall of diseases
e.g TB / small pox
decline in death rate
social factors (5)
- improved nutrition
- medical improvements
- smoking and diet
- public health measures
- other social changes
decline in death rate
improved nutrition
MCKEOWN
improved nutrition responsible for 1/2 reduction in death rates especially dor reduction in TB
- doesn’t explain why females who had a smaller share of food lived longer
decline in death rate
medical improvements
- advances in introduction of anti biotics / immunisation
- NHS set up in 1948
- greater knowledge
decline in death rate
smoking and diet
HARPER
HARPER – greatest reduction due to less people smoking / sugesting we are moving to an american health culture with ( long life span through medication)
- howeber obestity has replaced smoking but deaths remain low due to medication
decline in death rate
Public health measures
20th century laws past
* improved housing
* purer wayer
* sugar axes
* improved sewage disposes
decline in death rate
other social changes
- decline of dangerous occupations
- smaller families
- higher income - healthier lifestlye
what is life expectancy ?
refers to how long on aberage a person born in a given year can expect to live
decline in death rate
gender / reigonal differences
- women live longer
- north has lower life expectancy
- WC manual jobs 3x more likely to die before 65
what is the ageing population?
Avergage age of the UK is rising with more people 65+ than to those uner 18
3 causes of an ageing population
- increasing life expectancy
- declining infant mortality
- declining fertility
Effects of ageing populaiton ( 4)
- 1 person pension household
- dependency ratio
- ageism
- Bean pole families ( extended families)
- Increase in tax / national insurance to fund services - public services
ageism
public services
- older people consume more healthcare / services
- changes to policies of housing / transport needing to be developed
ageism
1 person pensioner household
accountd for 12.5% of all households
ageism
ageism - def
the stereotypes / prejudice and discrimination towards others baed on age
What is the bean pole family?
Bean pole family - A particular type of extended family -
BRANNEN describes it as ‘long and thin’
Extended vertically - through three or more generations
But is not extended horizontally - no aunts / uncles / cousins
Why has the bean pole family increased?
- One reason is increased life expectancy - meaning more grandparents are surviving
- Another reason for the increase is smaller family sizes - meaning people have fewer siblings → fewer horizontal ties
where did ageism come from?
It’s argued that ageism is the product of ‘structured dependency’. As a result of being excluded from the workplace, the elderly are largely dependent upon the working population.
Our identity is massively shaped by our employment. Those excluded from paid work are labelled as deviant and are in possession of a stigmatised identity.
In modern society, our life is structured into a series of distinct stages: childhood, adulthood and old-age. Once you hit these stages, you have specific roles to fulfil. The old are excluded from a role in the labour force.
ageism
modern societal view - 20th century
- many sociologists argue it developed due to structured dependency
- old are excluded from production making them economically dependent - therefore in a society where roles based on status in production
**old are valued as lazy and powerless **
ageism
post modern society
- Postmodernist sociologists argue → the fixed orderly stages of the life course have broken down → boundaries in life stages are blurred → individuals have more freedom
→ consumption not production becomes the focus of society - now defined by what you consume
→ HUNT - argues this means that we are able to choose lifestyle and identity regardless of age.
- Trends begin to break down stereotypes of modern society → 2 features of postmodern
- The centrality of the media - positive aspects of elderly life represented
Emphasis on surface features - body becomes a surface we can write out identity with anti - ageing products allowing old to write their own identity.
criticism of post modern view
PILCHER
argues ineuqalities such as class and gender remain important with many relating to previous occupation
inequalities amongst the old
- class
- Gender
- MC have better occupational pensions and greater savings from these high salaries - poorer older people unable to keep these youthful identity
- women’s lower earnings and career breaks means lower pensions → are also vulnerable to ageist sexist stereotyping.
criticism of post modernists
Post modernists understate the importance of these inequalities → these play a role in shaping the experience of old age → restricting the freedom of elderly to choose an identity through this consumption.
policy implications
HIRSCH → argues that a number of important social policies will need to change to tackle ageism.
- Main issue is finance a long period of old age → paying more from savings or working longer is needed
- Housing → encouraging old people to downsize to free up finance
He also argues a cultural shift needs to occur in the attitudes to old people → old age is a social construct
