Australia’s New Aged: Debunking the Ageing Society Myth

By John McCallum

The notion that our society is rapidly ageing has become a common narrative, often accompanied by grim forecasts for the future. It’s a story of today’s youth struggling to support the masses of geriatric baby boomers whose productive years are long gone. However, Australia’s New Aged reveals that this belief is part reality and part myth.

While it is true that there will be an increase in the proportion of aged people in the next 20 years, this is a temporary phenomenon. Moreover, tomorrow’s elderly are likely to be quite different from their parents. This book examines public policy for the aged in the context of an increasingly vocal and active elderly population and cutbacks to health and welfare spending.

The authors argue that policy makers have become trapped in a ‘social problem’ approach to ageing that assumes the elderly are a homogeneous, disadvantaged group with common interests. They examine a range of cases and identify negative consequences of inappropriate assumptions in terms of structural blindness and brutality. They show that this approach is no longer viable and argue that both policy makers and the aged care industry will need to be more sensitive to diversity and more flexible than ever before.

Australia’s New Aged is essential reading for students, policy makers and anyone working with the aged. It offers a fresh perspective on the challenges and opportunities presented by an ageing population, and provides insights into how we can better support and engage with our elderly citizens.

About the Author: John McCallum is Professor of Public Health and Dean of the Faculty of Health at the University of Western Sydney, Macarthur and co-editor of Grey Policy (1990). Karin Geiselhart is a journalist previously employed by the Office for the Status of Women in Canberra.

Book Details: Publisher: Routledge; 1st edition (March 31, 2021), Language: English, Hardcover: 158 pages, ISBN-10: 0367717484, ISBN-13: 978-0367717483