Date of Award

2016

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Department

Economics

First Advisor

Joerg Bibow

Abstract

One of the biggest challenges of our times is the ageing of the population. In the Western world - especially in Europe - low fertility rates and higher life expectancy have shrunk the labor force and created a large pool of older people who have to depend on that decreasing labor force. The economic ramifications of the situation can be severe. When the population is ageing, pension and healthcare costs are raising. Meanwhile, the labor force - the group that contains the people who are paying for those costs - is shrinking. As a result of the reduced labor force, the labor supply decreases. Like falling dominoes, different aspects of the economy underperform, eventually leading to reduced growth.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Included in

Economics Commons

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