The Family, the Market or the State? Intergenerational Support under Pressure in Ageing Societies

The book aims at giving a wide perspective on the consequences of ageing on the system of social support, pointing at the tensions already present today or likely to arise in the near future in the family network and the public welfare system (one of the chapters also deals with the voluntary sector). The book presents the point of view of demographers, economists, and sociologists. All the papers combine a theoretical approach with empirical analyses that, although occasionally highly refined, are presented plainly so that everybody can follow them. The book in general, and a few chapters more particularly, also have policy implications (and, occasionally, provide policy indications). The geographic scope is on the developed countries in general: these are studied sometimes globally (and comparatively) and sometimes individually (Canada, Italy, Japan, and South Korea).